


The Greater Good

by WitchQueenLil



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, POV Female Shepard
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2018-09-06 22:31:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 29,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8771953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WitchQueenLil/pseuds/WitchQueenLil
Summary: A flirty Shepard takes command of the Normandy. She fights Saren and defeats the Geth, but nearly loses her life. She flirts, teases, and falls in love. Then she discovers two things that change everything she knows about herself and the war.





	1. Introduction

A/N: This is just a short beginning chapter. I accept all feedback so please tell me what you think.

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A woman with red-streaked black hair down just below her shoulder blades sits staring out a window.  
Three men watch her as they sit at a table in a sound-proofed meeting room. They sort through dossiers of different military men and women. They’re talking about her future and she has no idea.  
The ambassador turns to the two obviously military men and says, “Well, what about Shepard?” He gestures to the woman at the window. “She’s a spacer. Lived aboard starships most of her life.’  
The younger military man says, “Military service runs in the family. Both her parents were in the navy.”  
The older military man adds, “She proved herself during the Blitz. Held off enemy forces on the ground until reinforcements arrived.”  
The younger military man chimes in again, “She’s the only reason Elysium is still standing.”  
The ambassador concedes, “We can’t question her courage.”  
The younger military man jumps in, “Humanity needs a hero. And Shepard’s the best we’ve got.”  
The ambassador sees that an argument will go nowhere. “I’ll make the call.”


	2. To Eden Prime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first official chapter of The Greater Good. Give me feedback, please.

“Head to Eden Prime for our shakedown run, let’s see how this ship handles,” Anderson says next to me.  
“Aye, aye, sir,” the pilot responds from his seat. As Anderson walks away the pilot addresses me and says, “I’m Jeff Moreau, Commander. But you can just call me Joker.”  
“You can just call me Shepard, Joker. No need to call me Commander,” I reply with a smile.  
“Alright Shepard,” he says, “So you think this is really a shakedown run? Because, honestly I don’t see how it can be with that Spectre on board.”  
“Well we’ll have to see what’s going on when we get there, so get us there fast Joker,” I say. I lean against the side of his seat and watch the stars move by. 'This is what I live for; this is why I joined the military.' I think to myself and smile. I glance at the empty co-pilot seat. 'I wonder if Joker would mind if I sat down. I don’t want to intrude.'  
“Are you going to stand there for the whole trip Shepard? I haven’t had an audience since flight school.”  
'Is he teasing me? It almost sounds like he’s trying to tease me.' I debate for a few more minutes before finally making up my mind. “Joker, mind if I sit up here with you for a bit?”  
“Uh, sure, Shepard. Go ahead.” 'He sounds confused.'  
I walk over and sit down in the co-pilot seat. At this angle I can finally get a decent look at his face. 'Wait a second; is that the Jeff Moreau that I met on Arcturus? Should I say something? Ask him? No, he obviously doesn’t remember me… Well if that is the same Jeff he definitely filled out nicely.' A small blush rises to my cheeks. 'I should not be thinking that.'  
“Uh Shepard, you’re kinda freaking me out here, is all the staring necessary?” He shifts slightly, looking uncomfortable.  
'Well here goes…' “Sorry Joker, you just look familiar, were you ever on Arcturus?”  
“Yea I, uh, grew up there, spent most of my time in the hospital though.”  
That’s when it hit me. “You were in the room across the hall from me when I broke my leg!” I can feel my eyes widen. “Sorry, I get loud when I get excited.”  
He looks at me, really looks at me and then what almost looks like recognition with a mix of something else sparks in his eyes before he turns back to the window and he watches the mass effect field move. “Oh yeah, I remember, you were the first person I saw come in with non-regulation hair color. I’m surprised they let you keep it.”  
“I’m surprised too, but I even made it through N-school with it, people made comments but no one told me I had to change it.”  
“Black hair with blood-red streaks like that and no one told you to change it? I don’t believe you.”  
I laugh. “It’s true, I even snuck in hair dye and touched it up once in a while.”  
Joker shakes his head, but before he can say anything I stand up and stretch. “I should go. I’ll come back to bother you later Joker.”  
I pat his shoulder and walk down to the mess hall. I grab a ration bar and a cup of tea and sit down to enjoy my pre-mission time. An older woman in medical uniform walks into the mess hall from the Med-Bay, seeing me she grabs a cup of coffee and walks over to sit across from me.  
“Hello, I’m Dr. Chakwas.” She smiles. “You must be Commander Shepard. Would you mind coming to the Med-Bay for a quick physical before you go groundside?”  
“I don’t really see why but sure, right after I finish my tea,” I say as I take a long sip of it. She gets up with her coffee cup in hand and walks back to the Med-Bay. The doors hiss shut and then a shadow falls over the table. I turn and see a man standing there, straight-backed.  
“Commander,” he salutes as he continues, “I’m Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko.”  
I quirk an eyebrow. “At ease LT. Something I can help you with?”  
“No ma’am, just striking up conversation.” He smiles. “So what do you think is up with the Spectre on board?”  
“I’m not sure but he seems nice enough, although I can’t seem to go anywhere without seeing him,” I respond as I take the last sip of my tea. I stand up pocketing my ration bar. “Make sure you’re ready when it’s time to go groundside and tell Jenkins too.”  
He stands and salutes again before disappearing to find Jenkins.  
I walk to the Med-Bay door. I’ve never much liked doctors but she asked nicely and I just couldn’t refuse. 'Deep breath, 1… 2… and out.' I wave the doors open and step inside.  
Dr. Chakwas turns around and looks surprised that I actually came to see her. “Well that makes things much easier, maybe I won’t have to order you in like I do with some people.” She smiles warmly. “Just stand right over here, I need a couple scans to update your chart,” she begins a scan and continues talking “I thought you were going to be difficult since you’ve only had minimal scans by the looks of your charts.”  
Her omnitool beeps, and she starts another scan focusing on my left wrist; I sprained it a little over a week ago. 'I really should have checked my form before I swung.' I grit my teeth, angry at myself for such a stupid mistake. 'Deep breath, 1… 2… and out.'  
“I’m just careful with my body, so I don’t need medical attention as often as some do, the way I move I was told I’d be a perfect sniper, invisible to the world until I want to be seen. I might have gone for it but I like being in the heat of the battle especially if I have the right people watching my back,” I finish and realize the omnitool had already beeped, signaling the end of the scan. Dr. Chakwas is just standing there listening. “I should go; you probably have other scans to do.”  
“Do try to come back after the mission Commander, just to be on the safe side,” she calls after me as I leave the Med-Bay.  
I stand there for a moment, 'should I go back up to the bridge? I could try to get in forty winks before we hit Eden Prime…' my body cringes a little at the thought of possibly running into Alenko. My feet act of there own accord taking me to the one place I know is safe from intrusion without at least a warning. I press the video screen button on the outside of Anderson’s cabin, “Mind if I come in, sir?”  
His face appears on the screen, smiling, “Of course, Shepard, come in.”  
The light on the door turns from red to green; I begin the opening sequence. It quickly opens, I step inside, and the doors swoosh shut. I lean against the wall by his desk. I open my mouth to greet him when the doors swish open again. No warning can only mean one thing… “Nihlus, is there something I can help you with?” Anderson asks without hesitation.  
“Ah, yes actually, but it’s a private matter,” Nihlus responds, eying me.  
I roll my eyes slightly, “I’ll be up with Joker if you need me,” I say to Anderson and smile, then walk out.  
Without looking around, 'no need to make unnecessary eye contact,' I walk straight for the nearest staircase and follow the curved path up to the CIC. I’m walking up to the bridge when I see Kaidan get up from the copilot seat.  
'Shit…' I turn around and look for a quick escape, no luck.  
I steel my nerves and turn back to the bridge. He’s started walking towards the CIC so I go ahead and walk past him as nonchalantly as I can up to the bridge, this is going to be an awkward mission and an awkward assignment… I make it up to the bridge without him trying to talk to me.  
“Hey, Shepard. You okay?” Joker asks.  
“Yeah, Joker. I’m fine, just a lot on my mind,” I lean against the side of Joker’s seat and try to get my thoughts in order. I glance over my shoulder.  
“Looking for someone or avoiding someone?” he asks with a smirk.  
“If you must know, Joker,” I continue after another glance over my shoulder, “avoiding.”  
He chuckles, “The Spectre?”  
“No, someone else,” I reply.  
He sits in stunned silence at that, and looks up at me. “The only other person people avoid on this ship is me and if you’re avoiding me you’re not doing a very good job at it.”  
I look back and see Kaidan walking up to the bridge. 'Damn.' “So are we almost to Eden Prime?” I ask changing the subject and hoping he drops it or gets the hint.  
He hesitates slightly then replies, “Yea just one last relay jump.”  
Kaidan salutes me, “At ease LT.” He walks past and reclaims the copilot seat.  
I look out at the sky and see the relay just before Joker says, “The Arcturus Prime relay is in range. Initiating transmission sequence,” he continues, “We are connected. Calculating transit mass and destination,” his fingers rush over the board.  
Nihlus walks onto the bridge; standing at ease he observes the approach.  
“The relay is hot. Acquiring approach vector,” the board turns green, “All stations secure for transit,” a pause, “The board is green. Approach run has begun.”  
The Normandy moves quickly toward the relay. I place my hand gently on Joker’s shoulder and squeeze.


	3. Before Touching Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some boring dialogue, following along with the games. Sorry folks, it will get better though.

“Hitting the relay in 3… 2… 1…” Light shimmers around the hull as we hit the relay and zoom through space. When we drop out of relay travel I hear Joker’s voice going through his checklist. “Thrusters… check. Navigation… check. Internal emissions sink engaged. All systems online. Drift… just under 1500K,” he says, sounding pleased with himself.  
Nihlus speaks up, “1500 is good. Your captain will be pleased.” He turns and walks back to the CIC. 'He’s probably going to meet with Anderson again.'  
A moment’s pause. “I hate that guy,” Joker says suddenly.  
Kaidan responds, obviously a little confused, “Nihlus gave you a compliment… so you hate him?”  
Joker counters, obviously ruffled, “You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom? That’s good. I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead. So that’s incredible.”  
I gently squeeze his shoulder again.  
He continues, “Besides, Spectres are trouble. I don’t like having him on board. Call me paranoid.”  
“You’re paranoid,” Kaidan obliges; then continues, “The Council helped fund this project. They have a right to send someone to keep an eye on their investment.”  
Joker’s remark in response, “Yeah, that’s the official story. But only an idiot believes the official story.”  
I can’t help but agree with him, “They don’t send Spectres on shakedown runs.”  
Joker says, “So there’s more going on here than the captain’s letting on.”  
The comms crackle on and Anderson’s voice filters through, “Joker! Status report.”  
Joker replies instantly, “Just cleared the mass relay, Captain. Stealth systems engaged. Everything looks solid.”  
Anderson responds, “Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime.”  
“Aye, aye, Captain,” a pause, “Better brace yourself, sir. I think Nihlus is headed your way.”  
“He’s already here, Lieutenant,” he says exasperated. “Tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the comm room for a debriefing.” The comm beeps then goes quiet.  
“You get that, Shepard?” Joker looks up at me.  
“He sounds angry. Something must have gone wrong with the mission,” I say.  
I start to walk away but I overhear Joker say, “Pff. Captain always sounds like that when he’s talking to me.” I huff a laugh.  
Then Kaidan says, “I can’t possibly imagine why.”  
I shake my head and make my way into the CIC. I overhear Pressley, the navigator, say, “I’m telling you. I just saw him! He marched by like he was on a mission.”  
Then I catch the other side of the conversation, Adams, our head engineer simply explains it as, “He’s a Spectre. They’re always on a mission.”  
Pressley presses on, “And we’re getting dragged right along with him!”  
Adams plays it off, “Relax, Pressley. You’re going to give yourself an ulcer.”  
I approach Pressley, he turns and sees me, “Congratulations, Commander. Looks like we had a smooth run. You heading down to see the captain?”  
“Sounds like you don’t trust our turian guest,” I say pointedly.  
“Sorry, Commander. Just having a chat with Adams down in engineering. Didn’t mean to cause any trouble,” a short pause, “But you have to admit, something’s odd about this mission. The whole crew feels it.”  
“You think the Alliance brass is holding out on us?” I ask, a little disbelieving. 'Pressley isn’t the type to question what he’s told; maybe I should really look into this.'  
Pressley responds quickly, eager to get out his misgivings, “If all we’re supposed to do is test out the stealth system, why is Captain Anderson in charge? And then there’s Nihlus. Spectres are elite operatives. Top covert agents. Why send a Spectre—a turian Spectre—on a shakedown run? It doesn’t add up.”  
He has some good points. I nod, saying “I’ll try to get some answers when I see him.”  
“Good luck, Commander,” he responds, then turns back to his work.  
I overhear another conversation, “I grew up on Eden Prime, Doc. It’s not the kind of place Spectres visit. There’s something Nihlus isn’t telling us about this mission.”  
I look over and see Jenkins and Chakwas having a conversation. I walk over while Chakwas is pointing out, “That’s crazy. The captain’s in charge here. He wouldn’t take orders from a Spectre.”  
Jenkins is quick to disagree, “Not his choice, Doc. Spectres don’t answer to anyone. They can do whatever they want. Kill anyone who gets in their way.”  
Chakwas laughs him off, “Ha! You watch too many spy vids, Jenkins.”  
Jenkins sees me, salutes, and asks, “What do you think, Commander? We won’t be staying on Eden Prime too long, will we? I’m itching for some real action!”  
Chakwas looks at him with a disapproving look, “I sincerely hope you’re kidding, Corporal. Your ‘real action’ usually ends with me patching up crew members in the infirmary.”  
I agree with Chakwas, “You need to calm down, Corporal. A good soldier stays cool, even under fire.”  
Jenkins looks at me as though I just told him he couldn’t go groundside, “Sorry, Commander. But this waiting’s killing me. I’ve never been on a mission like this before. Not one with a Spectre on board!”  
I reassure him, “Just treat this like every other assignment you’ve had and everything will work out.”  
“Easy for you to say. You proved yourself during the Blitz. Everybody knows what you can do,” he continues, “This is my big chance. I need to show the brass what I can do!”  
I give him a stern look, “You’re young, Corporal. You have a long career ahead of you. Don’t do something stupid to mess it up.”  
He straightens up, “Don’t worry, ma’am. I’m not going to screw this up.”  
With that taken care of I decide to ask about Nihlus. Turning to Chakwas, I ask, “What can you tell me about Nihlus?”  
Chakwas gives a general answer to start, “Turians are generally well-respected by the other species. Their fleet has more patrols protecting Citadel space than any other. They don’t always get on well with us, though. Some people find them too rigid. Others still blame them for the First Contact War,” she continues with more specificity, “As for Nihlus I haven’t said more than two words to him. He usually only speaks to the captain.”  
Jenkins jumps in suddenly, “I hope we get a chance to see him in action. I heard Nihlus took down an entire enemy platoon all by himself.”  
That led me to wonder, “What do you know about the Spectres?”  
Chakwas answers, “Only what I’ve heard. Spectre agents work directly for the Citadel Council. They usually work alone or in small groups. Spectres don’t have any official power, though. Basically, they’re a shadow organization with a mandate to preserve and protect galactic stability.”  
“Protect at any cost. Don’t forget that part. Spectres are above the law!” Jenkins adds with a mix of awe and anger in his voice.  
With that in mind I ask, “Why don’t we have any of our own people in there?”  
Chakwas again answers first, “Spectres usually come from the Council races. Like the turians. We’ve been trying to get a human accepted into their ranks for years now. So far, it hasn’t happened.”  
Jenkins chimes in, “Hey, Commander. You’d make a good Spectre! You’re a war hero right? Held off an entire enemy fleet during the Blitz single-handed. That’s the kind of talent the Spectres are looking for.”  
Chakwas is quick to jump in, “This is all just wild speculation. The Spectres aren’t interested in recruiting humans. No matter how capable.”  
I decide it’s time to walk away since Anderson is probably waiting, “The captain’s waiting for me.” I turn and head for the comm room.  
I walk in to the comm room and see a lone figure standing the center in front of the comm screen. It’s an obviously turian silhouette. I walk down the ramp thinking, 'Where’s Anderson? He should be here… Must be on his way, he does have a hard time with stairs occasionally. They really should have put an all-floor elevator on this ship.'  
Nihlus turns around at the sound of my footsteps, “Commander Shepard. I was hoping you’d get here first. It will give us a chance to talk.”  
My curiosity is peaked, “What about?”  
“I’m interested in the world we’re going to—Eden Prime. I’ve heard it’s quite beautiful.”  
I respond with what I’ve heard since I’d never stepped foot there before, “They say it’s a paradise.”  
“Yes… a paradise. Serene. Tranquil. Safe. Eden Prime has become something of a symbol for your people, hasn’t it?” he starts in his odd dual-tone voice, “Proof that humanity can not only establish colonies across the galaxy, but also protect them. But how safe is it, really?”  
That question put me on edge, “Do you know something?”  
He continues nonchalantly, “Your people are still newcomers, Shepard. The galaxy can be a very dangerous place. Is the Alliance truly ready for this?”  
His attitude is getting under my skin but I try not to let it show.  
Anderson walks in at that moment and immediately begins talking, “I think it’s about time we told the commander what’s really going on.”  
Nihlus seems to agree as he begins talking, “This mission is for more than a simple shakedown run.”  
I look back and forth between Nihlus and Anderson, “I figured there was something you weren’t telling us.”  
“We’re making a covert pick-up on Eden Prime. That’s why we needed the stealth systems operational,” Anderson explains.  
I cross my arms and cock my hip, studying Anderson’s face, “There must be a reason you didn’t tell me about this, sir.”  
He looks at me with a level stare, “This comes down from the top, Commander. Information strictly on a need-to-know basis,” he continues not breaking eye contact, “A research team on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of beacon during an excavation. It was Prothean.”  
“I thought the Protheans vanished 50,000 years ago,” I say, surprised.  
This time Nihlus pipes up, “Their legacy still remains. The mass relays, the Citadel, our ship drives—it’s all based on Prothean technology.”  
Anderson adds, “This is big, Shepard. The last time humanity made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward two hundred years. But Eden Prime doesn’t have the facilities to handle something like this. We need to bring the beacon back to the Citadel for proper study.”  
Nihlus jumps in again, “Obviously, this goes beyond mere human interests, Commander. This discovery could affect every species in Council space.”  
I nod to Nihlus, “It never hurts to have a few extra hands on board.”  
Nihlus decides to divulge a little more information, “The beacon’s not the only reason I’m here, Shepard.”  
Anderson continues, “Nihlus wants to see you in action, Commander. He’s here to evaluate you.”  
Realization dawns on me, “Guess that explains why I bump into him every time I turn around.”  
“The Alliance has been pushing for this for a long time. Humanity wants a larger role in shaping interstellar policy. We want more say with the Citadel Council. The Spectres represent the Council’s power and authority. If they accept a human into their ranks, it shows how far the Alliance has come.”  
Nihlus makes a point to bring up the Blitz, “You held off an enemy assault during the Blitz single-handed. You showed not only courage but also incredible skill,” he continues, “That’s why I put your name forward as a candidate for the Spectres.”  
My eyes widen, I stand in shocked silence for a moment longer than I should have before saying, “Why would a turian want a human in the Spectres?” 'Shit that came out all wrong. That’s not how I meant that at all.'  
Nihlus was already responding, “Not all turians resent humanity. Some of us see the potential of your species. We see what you have to offer to the rest of the galaxy… and to the Spectres. We are an elite group. It’s rare to find an individual with the skills we seek. I don’t care that you’re human, Shepard. I only care that you can do the job.”  
I turn to Anderson. “I assume this is good for the Alliance.”  
“Earth needs this, Shepard. We’re counting on you,” Anderson replies matter-of-factly.  
Nihlus pipes up, “I need to see your skills for myself, Commander. Eden Prime will be the first of several missions together.”  
“You’ll be in charge of the ground team. Secure the beacon and get it onto the ship ASAP. Nihlus will accompany you to observe the mission,” Anderson informs me.  
I nod, “Just give the word, Captain.”  
Anderson says, “We should be getting close to Eden—“  
He’s interrupted by Joker coming over the comm sounding a little worried, “Captain! We’ve got a problem.”  
Anderson immediately asks, “What’s wrong, Joker?”  
Joker quickly says, “Transmission from Eden Prime, sir. You better see this!”  
“Bring it up on screen,” Anderson instructs.  
The video begins to play. 'An emergency suit transmission is already not good but there’s definite shooting as well.' I’m immediately on edge. Suddenly a woman is running toward the suit cam, quickly giving an order, “Get down!” She shoves the soldier down, fires off several rounds.  
Then a man appears on screen, talking to the cam, “We are under attack! Taking heavy casualties. I repeat: heavy casualties! We can’t… argh!... –eed evac! They came out of nowhere. We need—” A blood spurt on screen and the man is gone, 'dead'. Wild movements, a flash of a bright light, a sound almost like an engine revving but thousands of times louder. The camera points to the sky and something huge is descending with several odd extremities that looking like a cross of legs and tentacles… 'What in the galaxy is that?' I almost move closer to the screen but the cam has moved and is swinging wildly around again. A blue-white light like that of an old bug zapper flashes on the screen several times then the video cuts to static.  
Joker’s voice filters into the room, “Everything cuts out after that. No comm traffic at all. Just goes dead. There’s nothing.”  
Anderson gives an order, “Reverse and hold at 38.5.”  
We’re back looking at whatever it is descending out of the sky. I look at it better; its black-plated, metallic looking tentacles leave more questions than answers. 'Is that a ship? What made it? I’ve never seen anything like it.'  
“Status report,” Anderson calls to Joker.  
“Seventeen minutes out, Captain. No other Alliance ships in the area,” Joker responds quickly.  
Anderson makes the call, “Take us in, Joker. Fast and quiet. This mission just got a lot more complicated.”  
Nihlus gives his input, “A small strike team can move quickly without drawing attention. It’s our best chance to secure the beacon.”  
I don’t like Nihlus’ control over the situation but I know he’s right.  
“Grab your gear and meet us in the cargo hold,” Anderson addresses Nihlus.  
Nihlus quietly leaves.  
Anderson turns to me, “You’re going groundside with Alenko and Jenkins.”  
“Aye, aye, sir,” I snap off a salute, pause; then give him a quick hug. We’re alone so I say, “I won’t let you down, Dad.”  
He pats my shoulder and smiles, “I know you won’t.”  
I walk out into the CIC and head straight for the cargo hold.  
Over the ship-wide comms I hear Joker, “Engaging stealth systems,” we enter the atmosphere, “Someone was doing some serious digging here, Captain.” I huff and shake my head slightly 'you have no idea Joker.'  
Anderson stands in front of Jenkins, Alenko, and myself, “Your team’s the muscle in this operation, Commander. Go in heavy and head straight for the dig site.”  
Alenko immediately pipes up, “What about survivors, Captain?”  
Anderson fixes him with a firm look, “Helping survivors is a secondary objective. The beacon’s your top priority.”  
The comm crackles, “Approaching drop point one,” Joker warns.  
Jenkins voice fills the silence that follows, “Nihlus? You’re coming with us?”  
Nihlus replies with, “I move faster on my own.” Nihlus jogs to the open cargo bay door.  
Anderson explains, “Nihlus will scout ahead. He’ll feed you status reports throughout the mission; otherwise, I want radio silence.”  
I nod in agreement and follow by saying, “We’ve got his back, Captain.”  
Anderson dismisses us, “The mission is yours now, Shepard. Good luck.”  
Joker’s voice warns us, “Approaching drop point two.”


	4. Eden Prime and the Dig Site

We move as a unit, military training sticking with us. We drop, scan quickly, Kaidan gives the all clear.  
'Time to fight.' We explore the area, covering ground quickly, ignoring anything that’s not a threat, stay focused.  
Nihlus’ voice over the comms grabs my attention, “This place got hit hard, Commander. Hostiles everywhere. Keep your guard up.”  
We move farther, Kaidan says something but I ignore him. Then Jenkins says in shock, “What happened here?”  
I feel bad for Jenkins seeing his home like this. I silently hope that it doesn’t cloud his judgment. 'We don’t need him acting like a hero.'  
We come to one of those areas that made me itch for cover, way too open. I crouch and give the signal for them to hold position. I wait and scan the area. 'It’s too quiet, I don’t like this…'  
I wave Kaidan to get cover behind a nearby boulder. Jenkins moves forward up the hill, hugging the jagged wall-like rocks on the right side of the incline.  
Three mobile turrets swing around the corner up ahead. Before I can even get my mouth open to yell, the bullets fly and Jenkins is down.  
I swing around and take down one of the turrets clean. The second I wing and it spirals to the ground and smashes on a rock. Kaidan takes the third out in three shots. I run over to Jenkins. Almost dropping to my knees, I look at his motionless body on the ground.  
Kaidan closes Jenkins’ eyes with his fingers, “Ripped right through his shields. Never had a chance,” Kaidan’s voice sounds cold. It makes me both sad and angry.  
“We’ll see that he gets a proper service once the mission is complete. Until then we have to stay focused,” I say. I pray silently to the gods that his passage be smooth.  
“Aye, aye, ma’am,” Kaidan responds.  
We start moving again, at the top of the hill three more of those flying turrets appear. I take out two quick and clean, Kaidan fries the last one.  
Nihlus’ dual tones ring through the comm again, “I’ve got some burned out buildings here, Shepard. A lot of bodies. I’m going to check it out. I’ll try to catch up with you at the dig site.” The comm goes silent again.  
Kaidan and I move out following the stony trail, a right turn and we’re back in a more cover friendly area. We take cover on each side of the trail. 'Turrets again.' Kaidan takes out the first, I take out the second two clean. We push forward; we crest the next hill and see the woman from the transmission running for her life.  
She makes it into cover and takes out the turrets chasing her. She and I look up just in time to see two robotic beings, which look strangely like the Geth from old history textbooks, spearing a man on a retractable spike of some sort. She runs for cover farther away from them and gets ready to shoot.  
Kaidan and I move at the same time but I take them both out. I walk over to the woman.  
“Thanks for your help, Commander. I didn’t think I was going to make it,” she continues on with more formality, “Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212. You the one in charge here, ma’am?”  
My immediate response was, “Are you wounded, Williams?”  
She humors me, “A few scrapes and burns. Nothing serious. The others weren’t so lucky,” emotion seeps into her voice, “Oh, man… We were patrolling the perimeter when the attack hit. We tried to get off a distress call, but they cut our communications. I’ve been fighting for my life ever since.”  
“Where’s the rest of your squad?” I ask as Kaidan does a sweep of the area.  
“We tried to double back to the beacon. But we walked into an ambush. I don’t think any of the others… I think I’m the only one left,” the emotion in her voice was obvious.  
I aimed to comfort, “This isn’t your fault, Williams. You couldn’t have done anything to save them.”  
She straightened her back, “Yes, ma’am. We held our position as long as we could. Until the geth overwhelmed us.”  
Kaidan decides to jump in, “The geth haven’t been seen outside the Veil in nearly 200 years. Why are they here now?”  
Williams shrugs, “They must have come for the beacon. The dig site is close. Just over that rise. It might still be there.”  
We’re a ground team member short and here I have a perfectly capable soldier ready to go. So naturally I say, “We could use your help, Williams.”  
Her response is just what I wanted to here, “Aye, aye, ma’am. It’s time for payback.”  
“Move out!” I turn and head for the dig site quickly.  
“The beacon’s at the far end of this trench,” she calls to me.  
I take out three geth as we approach the dig site. We walk into the dig site and the beacon isn’t here.  
“This is the dig site. The beacon was right here. It must have been moved,” she says clearly a little surprised.  
Kaidan seems a little disgruntled as he asks, “By who? Our side? Or the geth?”  
I really didn’t like his attitude right then. All I could think was, 'and how in the hell is she supposed to know, Kaidan? How would she know when she’s been running for her life and then fighting with us?'  
Ashley responded, “Hard to say. Maybe we’ll know more after we check out the research camp.”  
“You think anyone made it out of here alive?” I ask calmly.  
“If they were lucky. Maybe hiding up in the camp,” Ashley suggests. “It’s just on the top of the ridge. Up the ramps.”  
Nihlus’ voice rings over the comms, “Change of plans, Shepard. There’s a small spaceport up ahead. I want to check it out. I’ll wait for you there.”  
We jog up the ramp, the camp comes into view, and Ashley’s voice breaks the silence, “Looks like they hit the camp hard.”  
Kaidan warns, “It’s a good place for an ambush. Keep your guard up.”  
We scan the area. Creepy, glowing corpses run through on those strange retractable spikes. A step forward and the spikes retract. Kaidan’s voice rings out in fear, “Oh, god! They’re still alive!”  
Ashley panics slightly, “What did the geth do to them?”  
The corpses stand up and start charging us. We each take down one. We move into the camp, I see an unlocked door to a prefab and locked door. I go to the unlocked door first and check it then move to the locked door. I hack it easily and we find two people inside, a doctor and her assistant.  
I check on them and once I'm sure they’re okay we leave them where they are and head to the spaceport. Just before we crested the hill we heard a single gunshot; we weren’t expecting that so I rushed over the hill with Ash and Kaidan on my heels.  
A hand full of those glowing corpses, nicknamed husks, and a few geth later we were opening the door to a prefab. We checked if they were safe and managed to get some information on a smuggling ring. With our information we headed for the spaceport to figure out the source of the gunshot and find this dock worker, Powell.


	5. The Beacon and the Vision

We walk onto the spaceport and up to an alien yet familiar body lying motionless on the ground. 'Fuck, no, not another one.'  
Kaidan is the first to say the words, “Commander, it’s Nihlus.”  
A shuffling sound caught our attention. “Something’s moving! Over behind the crates!” Ashley alerts us.  
A man stands up obviously panicked, “Wait! Don’t—Don’t shoot! I’m one of you! I’m human.”  
I give him a warning bordering between stern disapproval and hot anger, “Sneaking up on us like that nearly got you killed!”  
If he would’ve had a tail, it would be between his legs right now as he stammered, “I…I’m sorry. I was hiding. From those creatures. My name’s Powell. I saw what happened to that turian. The other one shot him.”  
I calmed my voice, “I need to know exactly how Nihlus died.”  
He answered quickly, “The other one got here first. He was waiting when your friend showed up. He called him Saren. I think they knew each other. Your friend seemed to relax. He let his guard down… and Saren killed him. Shot him right in the back. I’m just lucky he didn’t see me behind the crates.”  
I confront Powell about his smuggling ring and manage to get some of the equipment back. Powell walks away after giving us a little more information then we head up to the cargo train.  
Moving from cover to cover we cross the train to the controls and kill every geth along the way. When we make it to the other end of the spaceport we find demo charges rigged to blow. I disarm the charges while Ash and Kaidan take care of the geth, it takes a while but I manage to get them offline with time to spare. I finish the charges and help clear out the remaining geth and husks. We salvage what materials we can then call in the Normandy for pick-up.  
“ETA 10 minutes,” Joker says.  
Suddenly the beacon’s field expands with a humming sound. I look over just in time to see Kaidan being pulled into the field. I don’t like him but who knows what that thing could do so I’m thrown into action, I grab him and shove him out of the odd, green field.

My head starts pounding and I hear horrible screeching.  
Scenes of death and destruction filter through my head, moving much too fast for me to analyze. I see a flash of a lone figure standing in a sunset as a large, dark thing flies out of the atmosphere. A flash of the same figure lain in a tube of some sort. Then everything goes black and I hear three words, 'Find me,' in a very distinct voice then I hear 'Reapers' in a frail raspy voice and the world goes quiet.

I slowly come into reality, I crack my eyes open only to be blinded by bright white lights. I bring my hand to my eyes but it proves unnecessary when the lights are dimmed by the Med-Bay VI.   
A male voice, Kaidan’s, I realize, speaks up, “Doctor? Doctor Chakwas, I think she’s waking up.”  
I sit up slowly trying not to have a head rush. I rub my forehead as my headache fades away.  
Doctor Chakwas walks over and begins talking to me, “You had us worried there, Shepard. How are you feeling?”  
I answer honestly, “Minor throbbing. Nothing serious. How long was I out?”  
Doctor Chakwas gives me a worried look, “About fifteen hours. Something happened down there with the beacon, I think.  
Kaidan jumps in, "It’s my fault. I must have triggered some kind of security field when I approached it. You had to push me out of the way.”  
I comfort him as is my normal reaction to these situations, “You had no way to know what would happen.”  
Chakwas uses the gap to say, “Actually we don’t even know if that’s what set it off. Unfortunately we’ll never get the chance to find out.”  
“The beacon exploded. Some kind of system overload, maybe. The blast knocked you cold. Williams and I had to carry you back here to the ship,” Kaidan adds  
As much as I hate the idea of him having touched me… I say, “I appreciate it.”  
Chakwas goes right back into the medical talk, “Physically, you’re fine. But I detected some unusual brain activity, abnormal beta waves. I also noticed an increase in your rapid eye movement, signs typically associated with intense dreaming.”  
I respond to that, “I saw—I’m not sure what I saw. Death. Destruction. Nothing’s really clear.”  
Chakwas thinks for a moment, “Hmmm. I better add this to my report. It may—Oh, Captain Anderson.”  
Anderson addresses Chakwas, “How’s our XO holding up, Doctor?”  
Her professionalism in place she replies, “All the readings look normal. I’d say the commander’s going to be fine.”  
“Glad to hear it,” he turns from Chakwas to me, “Shepard, I need to speak with you—in private.”  
Kaidan salute with an, “Aye, aye, Captain. I’ll be in the mess if you need me.” He marches out and the doors swish shut. Chakwas walks over to her desk.  
Anderson’s demeanor softens, “Sounds like that beacon hit you pretty hard, Lili. You sure you’re okay?”  
“I don’t like soldiers dying under my command, and Nihlus was killed, too.” Finally saying what was on my mind felt good.  
“Jenkins wasn’t your fault and Nihlus definitely wasn't your fault. You did a good job, Lili,” Anderson says, showing me where I get my need to comfort people from.  
The next thing that came to mind, “Did we leave Gunnery Chief Williams on Eden Prime?” I ask, hoping she came along.  
Anderson reassured me, “I figured we could use a soldier like her. She’s been reassigned to the Normandy.”  
“Williams is a good soldier. She deserves it,” I say with a slight smile on my face.  
“Lieutenant Alenko agrees with you. That’s why I added her to our crew,” Anderson adds.  
“Was there something else you wanted to talk about?” I ask, knowing this wasn’t all he wanted to talk about.  
“I’m not going to lie to you, Lili. Things look bad. Nihlus is dead. The beacon was destroyed and geth are invading. The Council’s going to want answers,” Anderson warns me.  
“I didn’t do anything wrong, Dad. Hopefully, the Council can see that,” I say.  
Anderson reassures me, “I’ll stand behind you and your report, Lili. You’re a damned hero in my books. That’s not why I’m here. It’s Saren, that other turian. Saren’s a Spectre, one of the best. A living legend. But if he’s working with the geth, it means he’s gone rogue. A rogue Spectre’s trouble. Saren’s dangerous. And he hates humans.”  
“Why?” I ask, curiosity coloring my words.  
“He thinks we’re growing too fast, taking over the galaxy. A lot of aliens think that way. Most of them don’t do anything about it. But Saren has allied himself with the geth. I don’t know how. I don’t know why. I only know it had something to do with that beacon. You were there just before the beacon self-destructed. Did you see anything? Any clue that might tell us what Saren was after?” he asks almost eagerly.  
'Alright, Dad, if you must know…' “Just before I lost consciousness, I had some kind of vision.”  
He prompts me to keep going, “A vision? A vision of what?”  
“I saw synthetics. Probably not geth. Slaughtering people. Butchering them...” I say reluctantly.  
“We need to report this to the Council, Lili,” he says before I finish speaking.  
“What are we going to tell them, Dad? I had a bad dream?” I ask with a scoff.  
“We don’t know what information was stored in that beacon. Lost Prothean technology? Blueprints for some ancient weapon of mass destruction? Whatever it was, Saren took it. But I know Saren. I know his reputation, his politics. He believes humans are a blight on the galaxy. This attack was an act of war! He has the secrets from the beacon. He has an army of geth at his command. And he won’t stop until he’s wiped humanity from the face of the galaxy!”  
I promise, “I’ll find some way to take him down.”  
Anderson gives me a warning, “It’s not that easy. He’s a Spectre. He can go anywhere, do almost anything. That’s why we need the Council on our side.”  
In response, I say, “We prove Saren’s gone rogue and the Council will revoke his Spectre status.”  
Anderson simply says, “I’ll contact the ambassador and see if he can get us an audience with the Council. He’ll want to see us as soon as we reach the Citadel. We should be getting close. Head up to the bridge and tell Joker to bring us into dock.” He leaves the room. 'Probably back to his quarters for a bit.'


	6. The Citadel

I walk out of the Med-Bay and I’m immediately greeted by Kaidan, “Glad to see you’re okay, Commander.”  
I nod to him and turn to find Ashley before I go to the bridge. I see Ashley leaning on a wall and walk up to her. She stands up straight and says, “I’m glad you’re okay, Commander. The crew could use some good news after what happened to Jenkins.”  
I agree, “Jenkins was a valuable part of this crew.”  
Ashley’s looks down at the floor, “Part of me feels guilty over what happened. If Jenkins was still alive, I might not be here.”  
I reassure her, “You’re a good soldier, Williams. You belong on the Normandy.”  
She smiles a little. “Thanks, Commander. That means a lot from you. I’ve never met anyone who was awarded the Star of Terra.”  
I finish checking on her and head up to the bridge.  
Joker greets me almost warmly, “Good timing, Shepard. I was just about to bring us into the Citadel. See that taxpayer money at work.” We transit through the relay easily. Several people run onto the bridge.  
Ashley exclaims, “Look at the size of that ship!”  
Joker is immediately defensive though not enough to make it completely obvious.  
Kaidan speaks up, “The Ascension. Flagship of the Citadel fleet.”  
Joker chimes in, “Well, size isn’t everything.”  
“Why so touchy, Joker?” Ashley teases.  
“I’m just saying you need firepower, too,” Joker defends himself.  
“Look at that monster, its main cannons could rip through the barriers of any ship in the Alliance fleet,” Ashley adds.  
Kaidan comments, “Good thing it’s on our side, then.”  
Joker calls over the comm, “Citadel Control, this is SSV Normandy requesting permission to dock."  
A male voice responds, “Stand by for clearance, Normandy,” a pause, “Clearance granted. You may begin your approach. Transferring you to an Alliance operator.”  
Joker says, “Roger, Citadel Control. Normandy out.”  
A new male voice comes on, “Normandy, this is Alliance Tower. Please proceed to dock 422.”  
We dock easily as the clamps come down and secure the ship. Anderson, Ashley, Kaidan, and I head straight for the ambassadors office, no detours.  
We walk in towards the end of Udina’s call with the Council. “This is an outrage! The Council would step in if the geth attacked a turian colony."  
The Salarian Councilor responded quickly, “The turians don’t found colonies on the borders of the Terminus Systems, Ambassador.”  
The Asari Councilor followed suit, “Humanity was well aware of the risks when you went into the Traverse.  
Udina fires back, “What about Saren? You can’t just ignore a rogue Spectre. I demand action!”  
The Turian Councilor took his turn to speak, “You don’t get to make demands of the Council, Ambassador.”  
The Asari Councilor cuts in, “Citadel Security is investigating your charges against Saren. We will discuss the C-Sec findings at the hearing. Not before.” With that the hologram cuts off and Udina paces away in a huff.  
He turns to us with his attitude still unchecked, “Captain Anderson. I see you brought half your crew with you.”  
Anderson corrects him, “Just the ground team from Eden Prime. In case you had any questions.”  
Udina’s venomous attitude coating every word, “I have the mission reports. I assume they’re accurate?”  
Anderson retains his composure, “They are.” Anderson changes the subject, “Sounds like you convinced the Council to give us an audience.”  
Udina’s anger still seething, “They were not happy about it. Saren’s their top agent. They don’t like him being accused of treason.”  
I jump in at this point, “Saren’s a threat to every human colony out there. He needs to be stopped. The Council has to listen to us!”  
Udina’s eyes fall on me with a look of cold rage, “Settle down, Commander. You’ve already done more than enough to jeopardize your candidacy for the Spectres. The mission on Eden Prime was a chance to prove you could get the job done. Instead, Nihlus ended up dead and the beacon was destroyed!”  
Anderson jumps to my defense, “That was Saren’s fault, not hers!”  
“Then we better hope the C-Sec investigation turns up evidence to support our accusations. Otherwise the Council might use this as an excuse to keep you out of the Spectres.” Udina turns to Anderson, “Come with me, Captain. I want to go over a few things before the hearing.” He turns back to me, “Shepard – you and the others can meet us at the Citadel Tower. Top level. I’ll make sure you have clearance to get in.”  
Udina and Anderson leave the office.  
Ashley turns to me. “And that’s why I hate politicians.”  
We walk out of Udina’s office and I take a detour into a nearby office. As I enter I see a volus and two elcor. I hear the elcor behind the desk say, “I understand what you are saying, but these allegations are very serious. I can’t just--”  
He’s cut off by the second elcor, “This is serious. My reputation is at stake. I spoke with the Consort in confidence, and her alone. And she betrayed that confidence.”  
“All right. I will look into-it for you. In the meantime, do not do anything rash.”  
Being the nosey and helpful person I am, I walk up to the second elcor to ask him about his situation.  
“Hello there, human. Sincere apology: but I am here on business and cannot be distracted right now,” he says in his fairly monotone voice.  
I jump right into it, “You seem distressed. Is there something I can do to help?”  
The elcor’s monotonous voice rang out again, “Alarmed response: you overheard that, did you? This is all going so wrong, and it is the asari Consort’s fault. She is the one that started all this.”  
“What did this asari do to get you so upset?” I ask.  
“I cannot speak more about this problem; it is too sensitive. Suffice it to say, she has compromised my authority as a diplomat,” he says.  
In turn, I ask, “Where can I find this asari Consort?”  
He’s quick to respond, “She is across the bridge from here. Her offices are easy enough to spot. Good day, human.”  
I leave the office quickly, an objective in mind. I walk down the corridor, down a flight of stairs, through a door, and down some more stairs. I walk onto the common walkway and glance left and right before deciding to turn right and follow the path past a CRT and to the start of a bridge. I turn left onto the bridge and walk across quickly, turning left again to go down a small ramp, there’s an empty doorway so I walk in and see an asari in a pink and white, tight fitting, floor-length dress.  
“Welcome, I am Nelyna. I don’t recognize you as one of our expected clients today. Would you like me to see when the Consort will be able to meet with you?” Nelyna greets me.  
Confused, I ask, “Can’t I just go in?”  
“Mm, I’m afraid not. Yeah, you must understand, there are many who seek the Consort’s services. But if you wish to leave your name, she’ll make every effort to meet with you,” she explains.  
“Commander Shepard. With the Alliance Navy,” I say. 'Why not?'  
Nelyna keys my name in. “Excellent. You should hear something back in… hmm, three or four months.”  
'Three or four months? That’s a little excessive.' I shrug it off. “I think I’m done here,” I say with a nod.  
“Aw. Well, I hope that you will return again in the future, we always enjoy seeing new clients,” Nelyna says with a smile.  
I turn to leave.  
A muffled sound comes from Nelyna’s headset causing me to turn back. “Yes, Sha’ira?” Nelyna responds. More muffled talking. “Yes. Of course, Mistress,” she says. She turns to me. “Huh. It appears the Consort has taken notice of you. She’d like to meet with you now.”  
“Where do I go?” I ask, peeking into the waiting room.  
“Just head upstairs. She will be waiting for you,” Nelyna says simply.  
I walk through the waiting area and turn right. I walk up the stairs and turn right again. A short corridor and I’m in the Consort’s chambers.  
A stern voice, “That is close enough, Commander.” Her voice relaxes, “I’ve heard a great many things about you since your arrival here on our Citadel.”  
“What exactly do you do?” I ask, a little suspicious.  
“That depends on your needs. I offer advice to some, comfort to others. I have a certain problem that could use your expertise,” Sha’ira says smoothly.  
My overly helpful self, of course, says, “Maybe I can help.”  
She jumps at the offer. “I have a friend. Septimus, a retired turian general, I won’t discuss the details, but he wanted me to be more than I could be. We had a falling out. Now he spends his days in Chora’s Den drinking and spreading lies about me,” She brings her hand up to my cheek and brushes it lightly with a lingering touch, I’m instantly uncomfortable, “If you would speak to him as a fellow soldier, I believe he would listen to you and let the matter be.”  
I focus on the matter at hand, “What exactly do you want me to tell him?”  
“Appeal to his sense of honor. Remind him of his position as a general,” she gives me a full body hug, “If you can convince him to stop spreading lies about me, I would be very grateful,” she finally moves away and walks across the room, “Now, I must ask you to take your leave. I have many clients waiting to see me.”  
'With pleasure.' I practically bolt out of the room, feeling like I need a hot shower. I have nothing against asari but unwanted physical contact like that is a big no-no for me. I leave the Consort’s ‘office’. As I step outside I check the time on my omni-tool, 'shit, we need to get to the tower.' I turn to Ashley and Kaidan, “C’mon, guys. We have to get to the tower.” We find the nearest CRT and head for the Citadel Tower.


	7. The Council

We walk up a short flight of stairs, right into the middle of an argument.  
“Saren’s hiding something! Give me more time. Stall them,” says the younger of the two turians.  
“Stall the Council? Don’t be ridiculous! Your investigation is over, Garrus,” the older one says; he walks away.  
Garrus turns to me, “Commander Shepard? Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-Sec investigation into Saren.”  
Curious, I ask, “Who were you just talking to?”  
Garrus obliges my curiosity. “That was Executor Pallin, head of Citadel Security. My boss. He’ll be presenting my findings on Saren to the Council.”  
“Sounds like you really want to bring him down,” I say.  
“I don’t trust him. Something about him rubs me the wrong way. But he’s a Spectre, everything he touches is classified. I can’t find any hard evidence.”  
Kaidan butts in, “I think the Council is ready for us, Commander.”  
“Good luck, Shepard. Maybe they’ll listen to you,” Garrus says.  
Kaidan, Ashley, and I turn and approach the staircase to the platform. As we ascend the stairs I see Anderson waiting halfway up the staircase and Udina standing on the platform. As we get closer Anderson hurries us forward, “The hearing’s already started. Come on.” He turns and we all file onto the platform.  
The Asari Councilor starts speaking, “The geth attack is a matter of some concern. But there is nothing to indicate Saren was involved in any way,” she looks up at his giant, looming hologram.  
The Turian Councilor speaks up, “The investigation by Citadel Security turned up no evidence to support your charge of treason.”  
Udina pipes up indignantly, “An eye witness saw him kill Nihlus in cold blood!”  
The Salarian Councilor interjects, “We read the Eden Prime reports, Ambassador. The testimony of one traumatized dockworker is hardly compelling proof.”  
Saren drones with his dull voice, 'unusual for a turian’s voice to sound dull…', “I resent these accusations. Nihlus was a fellow Spectre. And a friend.”  
Anderson’s voice filled the air next with an accusatory tone, “That just let you catch him off guard!”  
Saren’s rebuttal, “Captain Anderson. You always seem to be involved when humanity makes false charges against me. And this is must be your protégé, Commander Shepard. The one who let the beacon get destroyed.”  
It was my turn to add my two cents, “The mission to Eden Prime was top secret. The only way you could have known about the beacon was if you were there!”  
“With Nihlus gone, his files passed on to me. I read the Eden Prime report. I was unimpressed,” Saren casually explains, turning his head toward the Council, “But what can you expect from a human?”  
With that fresh out of his mouth I turn focus to that, “Saren despises humanity. That’s why he attacked Eden Prime!”  
His next response didn’t surprise me in the slightest, “Your species needs to learn its place, Shepard. You’re not ready to join the Council. You’re not even ready to join the Spectres!”  
Udina’s anger boils over again, “He has no right to say that! That’s not his decision!”  
The Asari Councilor speaks up, “Shepard’s admission into the Spectre’s is not the purpose of this meeting.”  
Saren snaps, “This meeting has no purpose. The humans are wasting your time, Councilor. And mine.”  
I speak up, almost pleading, almost, “Saren’s hiding behind his position as a Spectre. You need to open your eyes!”  
The Salarian Councilor responds, “What we need is evidence. So far we have seen nothing.”  
Anderson jumps in and I know what he’s going to say before he even says it. 'Please, Dad, don’t say it.' “There’s still one outstanding issue: Commander Shepard’s vision. It may have been triggered by the beacon.”  
Saren’s voice almost sounds sarcastic as he says, “Are we allowing dreams into evidence now? How can I defend my innocence against this kind of testimony?”  
The Turian Councilor is, of course, the first to jump to Saren’s defense, “I agree. Our judgment must be based on facts and evidence, not wild imaginings and reckless speculation.”  
The Salarian Councilor looks at me, “Do you have anything else to add, Commander Shepard?”  
“You’ve made your decision. I won’t waste my breath,” I say, a little bitterly.  
A wordless exchange goes on between the Asari and Turian Councilor. The Asari Councilor then says, “The Council has found no evidence of any connection between Saren and the geth. Ambassador, your petition to have him disbarred from the Spectres is denied.”  
Saren’s voice is dull arrogance as he says, “I’m glad to see justice was served.” The hologram fades out.  
“This meeting is adjourned,” the Asari Councilor decrees.  
Anderson, Ashley, Kaidan, and I walk away, leaving Udina to stare into the distance for a moment before he follows suit. Udina approaches us and immediately lashes out at Anderson, “It was a mistake bringing you in there, Captain. You and Saren have too much history. It made the Council question our motives.”  
Anderson responds, “I know Saren. He’s working with the geth for one reason: to exterminate the entire human race. Every colony we have is at risk. Every world we control is in danger. Even Earth isn’t safe.”  
“We need to deal with Saren ourselves,” I say firmly.  
Udina voices the thoughts we were all having, “As a Spectre, he’s virtually untouchable. We need to find some way to expose him.”  
“What about Garrus, that C-Sec investigator? We saw him arguing with the executor,” Kaidan suggests.  
“That’s right! He was asking for more time to finish his report. Seems like he was close to finding something on Saren,” Ashley chimes in.  
I turn to Anderson and ask, “Any idea where we could find him?”  
Udina speaks up, “I have a contact in C-Sec who can help us track Garrus down. His name is Harkin.”  
Anderson is quick to jump in, “Forget it. They suspended Harkin last month. Drinking on the job. I won’t waste my time with that loser.”  
Udina responds, “You won’t have to. I don’t want the Council using your past history with Saren as an excuse to ignore anything we turn up. Shepard will handle this.”  
I can’t help but say, “You can’t just cut Captain Anderson out of this investigation.”  
To my surprise Anderson agrees with Udina, “The ambassador’s right. I need to step aside.”  
Udina turns to Anderson and says, “I need to take care of some business. Captain, meet me in my office later.” He then proceeds to walk away.  
Anderson looks at me and backs the conversation up to Harkin, “Harkin’s probably getting drunk at Chora’s Den. It’s a dingy little club in the lower section of the wards.”  
A little taken aback, I half blurt out, “I thought you said he was a drunken loser.”  
Anderson explains, “Couldn’t hurt to go talk to him. Just be careful. I wouldn’t call him reliable.”  
I nod. “I should go.”  
“Good luck, Shepard. I’ll be over in the ambassador’s office if you need anything else,” he dismisses me and walks away.


	8. Chora's Den

We leave, heading for the lower wards.  
We’re just outside the hallway to Chora’s Den when I get a gut feeling to draw my weapon and get down. I learned a long time ago not to ignore those feelings so I move against the wall and get my pistol ready. I signal Kaidan and Ash to follow me, I crouch and move in.  
I hear a voice, talking to someone; then I hear shooting and see a hole in the wall across from me. 'At least two hostiles.' I spin, pulling my pistol up, my eyes lock on my target, I pull off a few quick rounds then drop down. 'Definitely two hostiles.' I wait a few seconds then I’m up and I pull off a few at the other assailant, back down. 'Hostile 1 is getting close.' Up, shoot, shoot, shoot, down. '1…2…3…' Up, shoot, shoot, shoot, down. 'First assailant down.'  
Five shots ring out: three hit a wall, one in the assailant, one in Kaidan’s shields. Up, shoot, shoot, shoot, down. Up, shoot, down. 'He dropped into cover. He’s wounded, too confident, no medi-gel, he’s going down.' I crawl around the corner, careful not to make sound.  
At the next corner I press my back to the wall. I peek around and he’s clutching a wound to his dominant arm, trying to keep his arm steady enough to shoot.  
I pull my pistol up, one shot, clean and simple, to the head. I stand up and holster my weapon; Ash and Kaidan do the same and jog over to meet me.  
We walk into Chora’s Den; I look around and turn right. I follow the curve and then I see a turian who looked more distinguished than the other clientele. I walk up to him, which catches his attention; he looks up and addresses me, “Commander? Hmph. What do you want?”  
I debate mentioning Sha’ira, I decide against it and ask, “What’s bothering you, General?”  
He’s pretty straight-forward with his answer, “I’ve seen a lot of horrible things in my days and there’s only one woman in this damn galaxy that helps me forget it.”  
“So if you feel that way, then why spread lies about her?” Kaidan inquires.  
“’Cause she rejected me. Me! Septimus Oraka, general of the turian fleet!”  
“I think I can see why you’re upset, but spreading these lies won’t make it better,” I say, trying to make him understand.  
“Look, kid. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but don’t waste your time,” he brushes me off.  
I decide it’s time to go a more traditional route, “General, did you ever win a battle by moping in a bar?”  
Septimus laughs, “Ha, war! That’s what this feels like all right. How did I let it come to this? So you think it’s that easy? Just straighten up and act like a general?”  
Kaidan butts in, “I don’t think it could hurt.”  
Septimus huffs then says, “Huh. Maybe you’re right, Commander. Sha’ira’s worth the effort… even if she won’t have me back.”  
“This is no place for someone of your stature, General,” I jokingly reprimand him.  
He looks at me with determination in his gaze. “All right, I’ll go to her… after I’ve had a cold shower. Or two,” a pause, “Say, you’re a bright kid. Would you be interested in earning a few extra credits?”  
“What do you want me to do?” I ask.  
“There’s an elcor diplomat out there who believes Sha’ira gave up his secrets,” Septimus begins.  
Kaidan interrupts, “Why does he think that?”  
“Because I told him,” Septimus says harshly. “Look, I just need you to convince him of the truth.”  
“What makes you think he’ll believe me?” I ask.  
“You’ll bring him proof,” he explains, simply. He continues, “Take this datapad. It shows where I got my info. It will exonerate Sha’ira and convince the elcor.”  
“Who am I taking it to and where is he?” I inquire.  
“His name is Xeltan. He’s an elcor diplomat. He’s over in the embassies complaining about Sha’ira,” a pause, “Here’s to soldiers acting like soldiers. Thanks, Commander. You know… you might make a good general yourself one day.”  
“Hard to imagine a general like that getting so upset over a woman,” Kaidan says, off-handedly.  
Ashley chastises him, “That’s because you don’t understand women, Kaidan.”  
We turn back and follow the path looking for Harkin. I hear a low threatening voice, “Back off, Wrex. Fist told us to take you down if you showed up.”  
I look up and see two krogan in a heated conversation. Wrex speaks up in a rumbling voice that definitely catches my attention, “What are you waiting for? I’m standing right here. This is Fist’s only chance. If he’s smart, he’ll take it.”  
The bouncer responds, “He’s not coming out, Wrex. End of story.”  
Wrex counters, moving closer to the bouncer, “This story is just beginning.” He turns away and walks almost straight into me, turning at the last second. He says, “Out of my way, humans. I have no quarrel with you.”  
I watch him walk away when I hear Kaidan ask, “What was all that about?”  
Ashley responds, “Who knows, let’s just try not to get caught in the middle of it.”  
'Oh, Ashley, we’re definitely getting involved in that situation because I’m getting that krogan on my ship.' I focus on the mission at hand and walk a few more feet to find Harkin, “Hey there, sweetheart. You looking for some fun? ‘Cause I gotta say that soldier get up looks real good on that bod of yours. Why don’t you sit your sweet little ass down beside old Harkin? Have a drink and we’ll see where this goes.”  
“Maybe later,” I say quickly.  
“Suit yourself, princess. You know, if more marines looked like you. I might’ve joined the Alliance instead of C-Sec,” he drawls.  
I try to move quickly through the situation. “Harkin, right? I was told you could help me find someone. A turian C-Sec officer named Garrus.”  
Harkin laughs. “Garrus? Ha! You must be one of Captain Anderson’s crew. Poor bastard’s still trying to bring Saren down, eh? I know where Garrus is. But you gotta tell me something first. Did the captain let you in on his big secret?”  
I know everything; Anderson is my dad after all so I just try to turn the conversation back to Garrus so I can find out where he is, “I just need to know where Garrus is.”  
“But it’s all related. Don’t you see? The captain used to be a Spectre. Didn’t know that, did you? It was all very hush-hush. The first human ever given that honor. And then he blew it. Screwed up his mission so bad they kicked him out. Of course, he blames Saren. Says the turian set him up.”  
I can feel anger start welling up, rising like magma in a volcano. Stay calm, he just has misinformation, I can’t let him know that Anderson’s my dad. As calmly as I can, though I still hear the anger in my voice, I say, “Just tell me where Garrus went.”  
Finally he answers, “He was sniffing around Dr. Michel’s office. She runs the med clinic on the other side of the wards. Last I heard, he was going back there.”  
“I’m out of here,” I say and turn to leave.  
“Yeah. Good. Go. Let me drink in peace,” he mumbles.  
I start heading out quickly, hoping to avoid the subject of what happened with Anderson and Saren. I have no such luck. As soon as we’re outside of Chora’s Den, I hear Ashley’s voice, “Why didn’t Captain Anderson tell us he used to be a Spectre?”  
'Damn it Harkin; now you’ve pissed off the wrong person.'  
Surprisingly, Kaidan speaks up and it eases the building anger, “Maybe it’s not true. Harkin’s an ass. I bet he’s just messing with our heads.”  
Ashley concedes, luckily, “You’re probably right.” When she continues it bothers me but I can understand why, “Still, I’d like to hear what the captain has to say about all this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd really love some feedback everyone. Thank you so much for reading.


	9. Garrus Vakarian

We head straight for the clinic, not wasting any time. I hit the control pad to open the door; as it opens I see a figure creeping low along a wall and woman in distress saying, “I didn’t tell anyone. I swear!”  
Some man being brutish says, “That was smart, Doc. Now if Garrus comes around, you stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or we’ll--” That’s when he notices us in the door way. He roughly grabs the doctor, presses a gun to her head, and yells, “Who are you?”  
I immediately hold up my pistol and demand, “Let her go.”  
That’s when the figure gets up, aims, and takes out the overly talkative thug, he groans and falls. The doctor screams, whether in pain or surprise I’m not sure. I have to focus on the other thugs first. Secure the area.  
It’s a shoot out but thanks to my being light on my feet I sneak up on a couple of them and take them out, while Ash and Kaidan got the other two. When the area is secure I holster my weapon. I walk up to Garrus and he says, “Perfect timing, Shepard. Gave me a clear shot at that bastard.”  
“What were you thinking? You could’ve hit the hostage!” I say sternly.  
“There wasn’t time to think! I just reacted.” His mandibles drop slightly, as he looks at the doctor. “I didn’t mean to—Doctor Michel? Are you hurt?”  
She responds quickly, “No. I’m okay. Thanks to you. All of you.”  
“I know those men threatened you. But if you tell us who they work for, we can protect you,” I assure her.  
She speaks willingly, “They work for Fist. They wanted to shut me up, keep me from telling Garrus about the quarian.”  
Intrigued, I ask, “What quarian?”  
She adjusts her gloves and begins pacing. “A few days ago, a quarian came by my office. She’d been shot, but she wouldn’t tell me who did it. I could tell she was scared, probably on the run. She asked me about the Shadow Broker. She wanted to trade information in exchange for a safe place to hide.”  
“Where is she now?” I need to know, this is really important.  
“I put her in contact with Fist. He’s an agent for the Shadow Broker,” she explains.  
That’s when Garrus interjects, “Not anymore. Now he works for Saren, and the Shadow Broker isn’t too happy about it.”  
Michel looks surprised, “Fist betrayed the Shadow Broker? That’s stupid, even for him. Saren must have made him quite the offer.”  
Garrus puts the pieces together, “That quarian must have something Saren wants. Something worth crossing the Shadow Broker to get.”  
I continue his line of thought, “She must have something that proves he’s a traitor. Did the quarian mention anything about Saren? Or the geth?”  
Michel’s face brightens. “She did! The information she was going to trade. She said it had something to do with the geth.”  
Garrus chimes in again, “She must be able to link Saren to the geth. There’s no way the Council can ignore this!”  
“Time we paid Fist a visit.” I pause, Garrus looks like he wants to say something. I wait.  
“This is your show, Shepard. But I want to bring Saren down as much as you do. I’m coming with you!” He isn’t backing down.  
“Welcome aboard, Garrus.” I nod.  
“You know, we aren’t the only ones going after Fist. The Shadow Broker hired a krogan bounty hunter named Wrex to take him out.”  
Ashley takes a turn to speak, “Yeah, we saw him in the bar.”  
I play off my excitement, “A krogan might come in handy.”  
“Last I heard, he was at the C-Sec academy,” Garrus informs me.  
“What’s he doing there?” Kaidan asks.  
I give him a side glance and slightly shake my head. Why do you think, Kaidan? He was making threats!  
“Fist accused him of making threats. We brought Wrex in for a little talk. If you hurry, you can catch him at the academy before he leaves.”  
“Kaidan, go get some R&R, be at the ship in no more than 24 hours. Garrus and Williams, you come with me. Move out.”


	10. Urdnot Wrex and Fist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. I apologize for the wait. My computer's charging port malfunctioned but it's all fixed now.

We leave the clinic and head down the nearby staircase. We hang a left, straight down a hallway, and take an elevator down to the academy. Turn right, up a small flight of stairs then I stop and look around. To my right is a krogan surrounded by several C-Sec officers. 'Wrex…'  
I approach and I hear one of the officers saying, “Witnesses heard you making threats in Fist’s bar. Stay away from him.”  
Wrex’s rumbling voice responds, “I don’t take orders from you.”  
The officer tries to be threatening but very few things or people can be threatening when staring down a krogan. “This is your only warning Wrex.”  
Wrex gets in his face; the officer barely holds his composure. “You should warn Fist. I will kill him.”  
“You want me to arrest you?” he warns.  
A low, rumbling chuckle. “I want you to try.”  
Wrex walks towards me; the C-Sec officer tries to sound tough. “Go on. Get out of here.”  
Wrex stops and looks me up and down. “Do I know you, human?”  
“My name’s Shepard. I’m going after Fist. Thought you might want to come along,” I say easily.  
“Shepard? Commander Shepard? I’ve heard a lot about you,” Wrex says. He steps closer to me, “We’re both warriors, Shepard. Out of respect, I’ll give you fair warning. I’m going to kill Fist.”  
Garrus can sense tension in the air and quickly says, “Fist knows you’re coming. We’ll have a better chance if we all work together.”  
Wrex seemingly ignores Garrus and continues talking to me, “My people have a saying: Seek the enemy of your enemy, and you will find a friend.”  
“Glad to have you on the team, Wrex.” I smile and shake his hand.  
Eager, Wrex says, “Let’s go. I hate to keep Fist waiting.” His grin was enough to make a sane man draw his gun or shit his pants.  
I turn to my team, “Williams, get some R&R. Be at the ship in no more than 24 hours. Wrex, Garrus, we’re going to go get Fist.”  
We leave the C-Sec academy the way we came and head straight for Chora’s Den. Before we walk into the entranceway, I un-holster my pistol, Wrex pulls out his shotgun and Garrus, his assault rifle. We move in.  
At the entrance Garrus speaks up, “It looks like it’s shut down.”  
Wrex acknowledges Garrus saying, “Fist knows we’re coming.”  
Just then the door slides open without prompting and we’ve become sitting ducks. I start shooting, aiming at the closest assailants. I take a couple of shots to my shields before I can get behind cover. Moving from cover to cover I take out several of the shooters. Wrex and Garrus take a couple each. We get back to the doorway and a couple of warehouse workers are cowering and holding guns. “Don’t come any closer!”  
Garrus analyzes the situation, “Warehouse workers. All the real guards must be dead.”  
“Stay back or we’ll shoot!” their attempts to sound threatening weakened by the fact that they’re outnumbered and untrained.  
I remain calm, at ease. “This would be a good time to find somewhere else to work.”  
They lower their weapons. “Yeah. Yeah, right. That’s a good idea.”  
“I never liked Fist anyway.” They leave.  
“It would’ve been quicker to just kill them,” Wrex says.  
Garrus speaks up, “Shooting people isn’t always the answer.”  
We walk through to Fist’s office and immediately shooting starts.  
'Two turrets… damn…'  
I aim for the one on the right side of the office, it’s the easiest to hit, a few pulls on my trigger and the gun is down, 'poor quality, dumbass.'  
I peek around the corner and take out the other. We walk in and straight up to Fist. “Wait! Don’t kill me! I surrender!”  
“Where’s the quarian?” I ask with my gun pointing at his head.  
“I don’t know who you’re talking about,” the sneer in his voice undermined by the quiver.  
I move the gun a bit to the right and shoot, “I won’t kill you as long as I get my answers. Where’s the quarian?”  
“Meeting Saren’s men in the back alley, she thinks she’s meeting the Shadow Broker,” he says quickly. I turn and pat Wrex’s arm, his arm tenses as he pulls the trigger.  
I raid the office for any information I can find. I grab what I can and head for the door. Garrus and Wrex follow me; we fight our way out of the bar.


	11. Tali'Zorah nar Rayya

We find the back alley quickly and I come to a stop at the top of a short staircase.  
“Where’s the Shadow Broker? Where’s Fist?” the quarian asks.  
“He’ll be here. Where’s the information?” a turian asks as he tries to search her.  
“Forget it. The deal’s off,” she says quickly. She pulls out a shotgun and shoots two of the assassins around her before getting behind cover.  
I start moving, jumping down the stairs before I even think it through. I go for my assault rifle and start shooting. Wrex and Garrus following me.  
The hardest to take out was the turian; he knocked my shields out and got me in the arm, medi-gel rushes through my armor to the injury, relieving the pain while I finished him off with a shot to the head.  
As soon as the assassins were dead the quarian came out of hiding and began yelling, “Fist set me up! I knew I couldn’t trust him!”  
My over-active mom instincts kicked in, I ask, “Were you hurt in the fight?”  
The moment of rage over, she tried to push confidence into her voice to answer, “I know how to take care of myself. Not that I don’t appreciate the help. Who are you?”  
'How silly of me…' “My name’s Shepard. I’m looking for evidence to prove Saren’s a traitor.”  
“Then I have a chance to repay you for saving my life. But not here. We need to go somewhere safe,” the quarian says is a hushed voice.  
“We could take her to the human embassy. Your ambassador will want to see this anyway,” Garrus suggests.  
“You’re right, Garrus. Let’s go,” I say and start leading the way while ushering the quarian along. It dawns on me that I don’t know her name. I turn to the young quarian lady and say, “I’m terribly sorry, it completely slipped my mind. What’s your name?”  
Being this close to her I could tell she was surprised. “Tali’Zorah nar Rayya.”  
“Nice to meet you, Tali’Zorah,” I say as we continue walking.  
A rumbling voice speaks up, almost causing me to shiver, “I thought for sure you’d gone crazy when you told Fist you wouldn’t kill him.”  
“Well I wasn’t going to steal your bounty, Wrex.” I laugh and it causes Wrex to chuckle. Hearing him chuckle makes me smile more.  
I look over and see Tali’Zorah wringing her hands nervously. I look back and see Garrus walking along looking mildly uncomfortable. I sneak a quick glance at Wrex and see a big grin on his scarred face.  
We’re almost at the bottom of the elevator when Tali’Zorah pipes up, “You obviously keep some odd company, Shepard,” glancing back at Garrus and Wrex she continues, “But why are you helping me? Not that I’m not grateful, I am. But we, quarians, are often seen us as a lower species. We’re called suit rats by many.” We step into the elevator and take it up to the Presidium.  
“Well you see Tali—may I call you Tali?” She nods. “I am not a xenophobe by any stretch of the imagination and I think anyone who treats someone badly purely based on species is worse than dirt. If someone calls you a suit rat then they are worse than the equivalent of a suit rat of their species, does that make sense? Anyway, you’re a sentient being and you should be treated as such. No one is less than anyone else,” I finish as the elevator comes to a stop and opens.  
I look at her and though I can’t see her face, I can see a faint outline of facial features and I think I read shock.   
We turn left and walk towards the embassies. Tali voices her doubts, “Do you think he’ll really listen to me?”  
“He doesn’t even listen to me, to be honest. But even jackasses deserve a fair warning. If he doesn’t want to see the war that’s coming then that’s his problem. Once Saren’s out of the way we should be able to resolve this peacefully.”  
I bring us to a stop outside Udina’s office. “Do you guys want to go in or stay out here?” I direct my question to Wrex and Garrus. “It’s up to you. I don’t mind if you come in, in fact it would be pretty fucking hilarious to see how he reacts to a turian, a krogan, and a quarian walking into his office with his least favorite human.”  
Wrex shrugs, “I’ll go in.”  
“So will I.” Garrus nods.  
“Alright guys,” I turn to Tali, “and lady,” I turn to the door and start the door opening sequence, “let’s go.”


	12. Spectre Induction

The door cycles open and we step in to hear Udina’s irritating voice, “You’re not making my life easy, Shepard. Firefights in the wards? An all-out assault on Chora’s Den? Do you know how many--” He turns and looks at Tali. “Who’s this? A quarian? What are you up to Shepard?”  
“Making your day, Ambassador. She has information linking Saren to the geth,” I reply with a smug smile.  
His disbelieving yet hopeful tone evident. “Really? Maybe you better start at the top, Miss…?”  
“My name is Tali. Tali’Zorah Nar Rayya,” Tali says.  
“We don’t see many quarians here. Why did you leave the flotilla?” Udina asks, obviously suspicious it might be an unsavory reason.  
“I was on my pilgrimage, my rite of passage into adulthood,” she explains. She launches into an explanation of the quarian people and the geth. She then says, “But I salvaged something from its audio banks.”  
She plays the audio file:

“Eden prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit.”

Anderson chimes in, “That’s Saren’s voice. This proves he was involved in the attack!”  
“He said Eden Prime brought him one step closer to finding the Conduit. Any idea what that means?” I ask.  
“The Conduit must have something to do with the beacon. Maybe it’s some kind of Prothean technology… like a weapon,” Anderson responds.  
Tali interjects, “Wait… there’s more. Saren wasn’t working alone.”  
She replays the audio file:

“Eden prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit.”  
“And one step closer to the return of the Reapers.”

The file ends.  
“I don’t recognize that other voice. The one talking about Reapers,” Udina says at little more than a mumble.  
A dull ache in my brain flares up; I speak with slight pain in my voice, “I feel like I’ve heard that name before…”  
“According to the memory core, the Reapers were a hyper-advanced machine race that existed 50,000 years ago. They hunted the Protheans to total extinction, and then they vanished. At least, that’s what the geth believe,” explains Tali.  
“Sounds a little far-fetched,” Udina says with obvious doubt in his voice.  
The dull ache turns into pounding as I push to remember and speak, “The vision on Eden Prime – I understand it now, at least some of it. I saw the Protheans being wiped out by the Reapers.” I feel my eyes widen as a flash of memory shoves itself to the front of my mind. “All but one.” I turn to Udina, “Ambassador we need to get excavation teams back on Eden Prime. There’s a Prothean in some sort of stasis pod. We need to get them out. How soon can excavations resume?”  
He looks at me, shocked, “Shepard, we can’t start excavations on a ‘vision’. Besides that, even if your vision is right this Prothean could be long dead. We need to speak to the Council before any decision is made.”  
“No matter what they think about Shepard’s vision, the audio file proves Saren’s a traitor,” Anderson says.  
“The captain’s right. We need to present this to the Council right away,” Udina agrees.  
Suddenly a low voice drifts through the air, “What about her?” Wrex gestures, “The quarian?”  
Tali pipes up, indignantly, “My name is Tali!” Continuing more calmly, “I want to come with you to see the Council, Commander.”  
“Of course you’ll come, Tali,” I say easily.  
“Anderson and I will go ahead and get things ready with the Council. Take a few minutes to collect yourself, then meet us in the Tower,” Udina says before hurriedly leaving the room.  
I turn to Garrus, “You go with them. We’ll be right behind you.”   
Garrus nods and follows Anderson out.  
“Wrex, Tali, let’s get a skycar. We’re moving out,” I order in my Commander voice. I turn on my heel and head to the nearest transport terminal, confident that Wrex and Tali are right behind me.  
As we load up into the transit, Tali pipes up, nervously, “So how exactly do we go about all this?”  
I start to give her an odd look when it dawns on me that she’s never had to deal with the Council.  
'Might as well be straight forward with her, she’ll see soon enough.' I take my seat as Tali sits in hers, Wrex is sitting in the back, slightly hunched over. “It’s rather straight forward until they start running us around in circles. You got to miss what happened earlier, lucky for you. Of course, knowing them they find some way to make it difficult just for the hell of it.” The ride ends with my sentence and we all disembark.  
Udina, Anderson, and Garrus stand a few steps ahead. We make our way into the Citadel Tower and up to the Council Chambers. As my boot just barely hits the platform I hear the sneering voice of Councilor Sparatus, “Ah, you’re back. Have you come to admit you’re wrong? Or do you have more ‘evidence’?” 'Did he seriously just use air-quotes? What the hell?'  
Tevos begins speaking, “We don’t have time—“  
I interrupt her by signaling Tali to play the audio clip causing Saren’s voice to ring through the Chamber:

“Eden Prime was a major victory! The Beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit.”  
The feminine voice follows, “And one step closer to the return of the Reapers.”

Tevos’s eyes widen. So the female voice is an Asari, someone Tevos knows. “Replay that last part,” Tevos requests.

“And one step closer to the return of the Reapers.”

Her eyes remain wide as she stammers, “No… N-No it can’t be.” 'Must be a powerful Asari for her to be this worried, possibly a Matriarch.'  
“You recognize the voice then?” I ask.  
Her head lowers, hanging in disbelief. “Yes… It’s… Matriarch Benezia… she and I were close. I’m practically an aunt to her daughter, Dr. Liara T’Soni. She’s at a dig site in the Artemis Tau cluster. If Benezia is working with Saren then it’s possible Liara is as well or will soon be a target.”  
Sparatus speaks up, “Saren is stripped of his Spectre status. You should investigate his financials tied up in something based on Noveria.”  
Udina pipes up, his voice dripping with indignation, “There’s something you’re forgetting, Councilors.”  
They give us a confused look and glance at each other. A look of realization comes over each of their faces as Tevos says, “Please step forward Commander Shepard.”  
I look at Anderson, he nods to me and I step forward, 'I told you I’d do it, dad.'  
“It is the decision of the Council that you be granted all the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel,” Tevos’s voice rings out.  
“Spectres are not trained, but chosen. Individuals forged in the fire of service and battle; those whose actions elevate them above rank and file,” Valern chimes next.  
Tevos’s voice calls out again, “Spectres are an ideal, a symbol. The embodiment of courage, determination, and self-reliance. They are the right hand of the Council, instruments of our will.”  
Sparatus takes his turn to speak, “Spectres bear a great burden. They are protectors of galactic peace, both our first and last lines of defense. The safety of the galaxy is theirs to uphold.”  
Tevos, again, takes a turn to speak, “You are the first human Spectre, Commander. This is a great accomplishment for you and your entire species.”  
“Your official assignment is to enter the Traverse to find and stop Saren. He’s a fugitive from justice, so you are authorized to use any means necessary to apprehend or eliminate him,” Valern says next.  
“This meeting of the Council is adjourned,” Tevos’s voice rings out. 'Hers is probably the most and simultaneously the least annoying voice out of all of them. She talks way too damn much.'  
I turn as footsteps sound Anderson’s approach. I see his eyes shining with pride and unshed tears of joy. His voice is solid with a water-edged tone as he says, “Congratulations, Commander.”  
Udina butts in immediately. “We have a lot of work to do, Shepard. You’re going to need a ship, a crew, supplies…”  
Anderson speaks up as Udina trails off. “You’ll all get access to special equipment and training now. You should go down to the C-Sec academy and speak to the Spectres requisitions officer.”  
Udina pulls himself out of his own little world long enough to say, “Anderson come with me. I’ll need your help to set all this up.”


	13. Nuchav's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a completely original chapter and I'd love everyone's opinions on if anyone sounds OOC. And I'm sorry it took so long. I've had a lot of stuff going on but I will try to have the next chapter up by Friday.

I turn towards my teammates; Wrex has a look that I interpret to mean he’s somewhat impressed. A look at Garrus tells me that he’s impressed and though I can’t see Tali’s face I assume she’s impressed. My stomach rumbles, 'damn when was the last time I ate? They’re probably hungry too…' “So… who’s hungry?” I ask.  
Garrus speaks up, “I know a great little place that serves levo and dextro foods. It’s not too far away.”  
“That sounds good.” I look to Wrex and Tali, “Are you guys in? I’ll pay.”  
A deep, rumbling laugh comes from Wrex as he says, “Not sure you want to do that, Shepard.”  
I turn to Tali, she mumbles, “Um… oh… uh… I guess I’ll come…”  
I smile at everyone. “Great and after that we can go shopping for rations, get new weapons, and mods…” I can feel my eyes are wider than normal, as the realization hits me. I rub the back of my neck and say, “I should probably start with asking if you guys actually want to go on a crazy suicide mission to catch a rogue Spectre… So… uh… would you like to join me on my insane mission?” I look hopefully at my alien companions.  
Garrus is the first to speak up, “Chasing a Spectre? Kicking ass and taking names? No red tape to get in the way? I’m definitely in.”  
Tali pipes up, “I’ll be safer with you than anywhere else especially since I provided the intel on Saren.”  
I turn to Wrex, hoping against hope that he’ll join me. I know krogans so I can’t let my hopes get too high…   
“My contract is done and I have nothing better to do… I’ll come along.”  
My heart pounds in my chest and I almost start jumping around like a fan-girl over her favorite actor or character. I stop myself from doing that and beam instead. “Great, since that’s settled let’s get some food.”  
Garrus leads us out of the Citadel tower to this little restaurant, 'closer to a pub or a dive really…' called Nuchav’s. We step inside and glance around for a table. The only visible, available table is back in the corner up against the front window. As we walk through to our table I notice us getting several strange looks mixed with a few glares. I doubt it phases Tali or Wrex but it might bother Garrus. 'If my crew wasn’t so new to me I’d give those glaring fuckers something to stare at.' I smile at a few people who seem curious and I flip off a couple of the people glaring. We make it to the table, it’s a rounded booth so I usher Tali into the middle seating with me, Garrus takes the outside seat beside Tali, and Wrex takes the outside seat beside me. We take turns ordering on the holo-menu mounted in the center of the table. Garrus gestures for me to order first.  
I scroll through the menu. 'Wow Garrus is right this is an impressive selection of foods. Oh my gosh they even have some human-based foods.' I smile and order a chocolate milkshake and some fries. I glance at the menu while the others order, I had studied general alien cuisine but I didn’t recognize their orders. When everyone finished ordering, the last of which being Wrex, I ask, “So does anyone know the best place to get rations around here?”  
“Best place is a shop, couple doors down,” Wrex says in his low voice, “Even has quarian safe dextro food.” He nods, gesturing further down the walkway.  
“We’ll head there next then,” I say with a smile.  
“You’re an odd one, Shepard,” Wrex observes.  
“You have no idea,” I say as my smile widens a bit.  
“Looks like I’ll find out.” Wrex eyes me then looks away to watch for the food.  
I look around the table and notice that everyone is studiously avoiding my gaze. 'Oh damn, my pheromones must be all over the place. Deep breath, 1… 2… and out. Focus on something to calm myself down… Deep breath, wait I smell fries…'  
I look over and see that the food has arrived. I take my plate of fries and my milkshake and begin to munch and sip. I risk a glance around the table and see everyone looks more at ease, well except Tali, but it’ll take time for her to get comfortable. Sitting next to Wrex is not helping my pheromone situation. I sip my milkshake and munch on a few fries. 'It sucks that there’s not even a ketchup substitute.'  
I look up and see that Tali has about half of her “meal” left, I feel bad that she has to get her nutrients only through smoothie like goo, that must be very dull.  
Garrus is almost finished, 'Looks like he had some kind of steak-like food.'  
Wrex is already done but I can see the remnants of something like gravy or some kind of sauce… 'I wonder what he ate.' I absently munch on fries and sip on my milkshake. I reach for another fry and feel nothing; that shakes me out of my meandering mind. I look at my cup and see it’s empty as well. I look over at Tali and see she’s just finished her smoothie. I pay for the food and we start heading for the door.  
I’m leading my little group out of the restaurant when I nearly run into this 6ft tall guy who is giving me the death glare. I meet his gaze evenly though the foot worth of difference doesn’t make it easy. “Is there a problem?” I ask.  
“What are you hanging around with them for? Don’t you have any human friends?” His voice grates on my nerves but I can’t help thinking he might be joking. 'Who could seriously think like that?'  
I focus on his face and the seriousness of his expression causes me to laugh, hard. He looks confused so I calm myself enough to ask, “This is a multi-species restaurant, we’re a multi-species group, did you not expect that?”  
He tenses up and responds without too much thought, “No, I just didn’t expect to see a human in a mixed species group.”  
I meet his gaze again. “You can NOT possibly be serious right now,” I say as the anger starts to bubble up in the pit of my stomach.  
“Yea I am serious, you shouldn’t be hanging out with a bunch of aliens.” His tone reflects that he can’t believe someone sees things differently than he does.  
“Obviously you think you can square up to me and I’ll just back down and do what you say but here’s what you don’t know,” I pull back my right arm and swing. My fist connects hard enough that I feel his jawbone bend under the force, “I’m Commander Shepard, Hero of Elysium, N7 operative, and the first human Spectre. I do what I want.” The thud of him hitting the ground was lost in my voice but his groaning was audible as my crew and I step over his body.


	14. Vareska

We step out the door and I feel eyes staring at me, I glance over my right shoulder and see Wrex giving me an appraising look. I start heading towards the ration store and I can hear the footsteps of my three companions behind me.  
"So what's the name of this store, Wrex?" I ask, my voice carrying over my shoulder.  
Wrex’s rumbling voice speaks up, “Store’s called Vareska. Ran by an asari.”  
We walk by a few stores until I see the sign reading “Vareska”. We step inside the store and an asari is standing behind the counter. I turn to my group and say, “Okay everyone spread out and grab your rations.”  
Tali quickly walks to the Quarian section of the store. Garrus isn’t too far behind her as the Turian section is that way as well. By the time I turn to look at Wrex he’s already lumbered into the Krogan area.  
I pass through the Krogan section as I walk towards the general levo section. I grab a few krogan snacks and make a beeline for the more human-like foods. I grab a few things for myself, some small favorites of mine and a couple things to bribe Joker with and head for the counter.  
I set down my goodies on the counter and pull up my omni-tool to place a bulk order with a slightly cheaper place for the rest of the crews rations.  
The first to approach the counter after me is Tali and I look over her small crate. “Tali, did you only get basic rations?”  
“Y-yes, why? Is this too much? I’m sure I can find—,“ she starts.  
“No, no. What I mean is that you can get more… and not just basic rations,” I take her crate and place it with my stuff, “go find yourself some non-standard fare, you need more than just this.”  
She’s quiet for a moment then turns to go back to the Quarian section. She’s just barely still in view when she turns back to look at me, as if asking if I’m sure. I wave her off with a nod and she disappears behind a shelf.  
The asari speaks up, “What’s the story?”  
I look over at her, she has distinctive lilac spots on her face almost like freckles on a human, just a light dusting of them across her cheeks. “That depends, what story do you mean?” I ask.  
She smirks and gestures around the store, “Why such a diverse group?”  
“They’re the ones I came across that had the drive to fight the same fight as me,” I say plainly.  
She leans forward slightly. “What fight is that?”  
“Hunting a rogue Spectre and saving the galaxy.”  
Her eyes widen. “A rogue Spectre? You mean those rumors are true? Who is it?”  
“You probably won’t believe this, but... it’s Saren Arterius.”  
“You mean THE Saren Arterius? The turian Spectre? The Council's favorite?”  
I nod and glance at my group members again. "Not their favorite anymore, I'm sure." They’re still browsing. I turn back to the asari, 'wait, what’s her name? I never asked, did I?' I look at the asari and stick out my hand for a handshake. “I’m Commander Shepard, by the way. And you are?” I ask.  
She accepts my hand. “Mirulzia T’neana, though most call me Mirule.”  
I smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Mirule.”  
That’s when Garrus walks up and sets down most of the load he’s carrying. I eye him for a bit, then when it’s clear he has no intention of setting the rest down, I ask, “Garrus, why are you still holding that?”  
He shuffles his feet, looking awkward, and responds, “I’ll uh… I’ll buy this Shepard.”  
I hear Mirule snicker a little over my shoulder. “Garrus, set it down,” I say calmly.  
“Shepard you already bought us lunch,” Garrus starts to argue, his subvocals accentuating his awkwardness.  
I fix him with a look and he lowers his head slightly and sets the rest of his load down.  
Tali shuffles up, having just heard the conversation, she quickly sets her snacks down on the counter and backs away. As the last of hers are set on the counter, Wrex lumbers up and sets his load on the counter. I notice that he had grabbed some of the same snacks I had grabbed to keep in my cabin just in case. 'Yes! That works out greatly in my favor.'  
We get checked out quickly and have our supplies delivered to the Normandy to be moved later if necessary. We walk out of Vareska and I turn to my group. “Where should we head to next?” I ask.


	15. Weapons and Mods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! I'm so sorry for the disappearing act I pulled. This year has been crazy. I found out I was pregnant, moved to a new house, got married, and just had my baby girl two weeks ago. I've been feeling so guilty for not working on the story so I'm going to try to make up for it. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
> 
> EDIT: Re-did the chapter, still short but I'll be posting up a new chapter in just a few minutes. I apologize for the disappearance again but I've got some more written and I'm getting back into the swing of writing. I'm also starting a new fic for Stardew Valley if anyone's interested. It's female player/Sebastian. As always all comments are welcome.

Wrex’s shrug lets me know he has no preference. Tali’s silence and her avid attention to the ground tell me that she has no idea. Garrus is the one to actually reply, saying, “We could check out the weapons shops.”  
“Sounds good,” I say with a smile. An epiphany sparks my next sentence, “We can check out the Spectre Requisitions Office.”  
We head back the way we came to get to the C-Sec office and quickly pass through. Eager to check out the weapons available to only the Council’s right hand, as soon as we step inside all eyes go to the weapons available. Wrex and Tali check out the shotguns, Garrus goes for the snipers, and I go straight for the assault rifles hoping to find something worth carrying around.  
I look at the choices checking the specs against my own weapon and am surprised and pleased to find a Tsunami IV. I buy it without a second thought and turn to the rest of my crew to see that Wrex hasn’t found anything he wants but Tali has upgraded. I look at Garrus and he has a couple new mods but his same old sniper. We head out and Wrex takes the lead heading to the lower wards. Tali and Garrus look at me and I shrug and keep following Wrex. He leads us into a run-down looking shop, I immediately look around and realize it’s an old gun shop. Wrex walks up to the shop owner, a Hanar, and a conversation is had, I continue looking at the weapons lying around in boxes and on tables.  
Wrex lumbers back over to us and jerks his head in the direction of the bulk of the inventory. Garrus takes that as a go ahead and starts looking at the stock, but seems to find nothing of interest as he quickly goes to a workbench by the store entrance and begins stripping, cleaning, and reassembling his rifle. I look at Tali and see her gathering odds and ends and taking them to a workbench as well. I look through some bins and find a few mods of my own. Wrex pulls out boxes of thermal clips and a pistol.  
Everything is taken to the front desk and paid for quickly. As we step out the door, I hear a beeping and I open my omnitool to see a message:

From: Captain Dad  
To: Lili

Report to the Normandy.

I chuckle at the contact name and turn toward the docks. “Come on guys. Time to get going.” They follow me to the docks and the Normandy.


	16. The Normandy (Getting into a New Rhythm)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone. In case you didn't read it I re-did the last chapter. You don't necessarily have to read it but I did want to let you all know. I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things and start posting again. I'm also starting a Stardew Valley fic Female Player/Sebastian. If you're interested I'll be posting the first chapter tomorrow. Love to all my readers. This week is going to be a little busy but I will keep writing and keep posting. I will not give up on this fic.

Anderson’s face is a mix of pride and solemnity. “Commander Shepard, say hello to your new ship,” he says as he gestures grandly to the Normandy.  
I remain silent as my eyes shift back and forth between my dad and the ship. “What? Wait… no, no, no. Are they forcing this? I can’t take your ship. You can’t just walk away.”  
“Shepard, the ship is yours. No ifs, ands, or buts about it,” his voice is stern but his face is soft. “You’re going to need it to stop Saren. We both know that.”  
A huff of a laugh escapes my mouth before I turn to my new crew. “Head inside everyone, and make yourselves comfortable. I’ll be in soon to take any requisition orders,” I say, before turning back to Anderson.  
I watch them file in from the corner of my eye. Once they’re inside I hug Anderson. “I’ll make you proud. Saren won’t know what hit him,” I say with a sad smile on my face.  
Anderson hooks a finger under my chin, and says in his fatherly tone, “Everything will be fine. We both hoped our assignment together would be longer, but these things happen. You kick Saren’s ass then we’ll have a big celebration, a party just like old times.”  
I smile and nod, then salute. “Sir, yes, sir.”  
“Take care of yourself, and watch out for Alenko. I don’t like the way he looks at you,” he says with a stern face.  
“Don’t worry, I don’t like him anyway. I got my eyes on someone else.” The glint in my eye makes him worry.  
“Come back safely and with as few new scars as possible,” he pleads.  
“I’ll do my best, like always.” I turn to head into the Normandy.  
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” he shouts after me.  
I laugh. “I won’t. You’re not exactly the best role model though.” I disappear into the Normandy. Letting the decontamination cycle finish took a bit of patience but I know it’s a necessary evil.  
I step onto the deck and turn towards the helm to see Joker. I step up behind him and hear, “So, a Krogan, a Turian, and a Quarian walk into the Normandy,” a pause, “Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, Commander.”  
“Relax, Joker. I’ve got everything under control,” I say with a smile. I pause a moment. “I suppose I should address the crew…”  
“Good call, Comm- Shepard,” he corrects himself. “I’ll open the ship-wide comm for you.” He flips a small switch and nods to me.  
I turn to the comm, leaning forward slightly. My voice flows through the comm, easily heard by the entire crew, “This is Commander Shepard. We have our orders: Find Saren before he finds the Conduit. I won’t lie to you, crew. This mission isn’t going to be easy. Our enemy knows we’re coming. Wherever he searches for the Conduit, we will be there. We will hunt him to the very ends of the galaxy and bring him down. Humanity needs to do this, but we aren’t alone. We are doing this, not just for our own sake but, for the sake of the galactic community as a whole. Saren must be stopped, and I promise you all… we will stop him!” I finish with as much conviction as I can muster.  
Joker closes the comm, and turns to me, saying, “Well said, Shepard. Captain would be proud.”  
I feel my eyes starting to water but keep my voice steady as I speak, “He gave up everything so I could have this chance. We can’t fail.” 'I can’t fail him.'  
“Yes, ma’am.”  
I turn and start walking to the CIC. I can practically feel Joker’s gaze on me as I walk away. I add just a bit more sway to my hips, and, knowing no one else can hear me, lazily call over my shoulder, “Come see it in my room; lighting’s better.”  
I can practically hear his jaw drop as I continue down to see my crew. 'I’m so glad he doesn’t know Anderson is my dad, maybe I can actually get some stress relief before he finds out. They always get weird when they find out.'  
I walk down the curved staircase on the right before taking the elevator down to the hangar. I turn left and head into the drive core. I speak to Adams, “How’s everything running down here? Any problems?”  
“Nothing to report, Commander. Our new Quarian friend is quite the asset though. Quick study. All around? A good kid,” he says with a fond smile on his face.  
I smile. “Good to know. I hoped you’d like her. She’s a tough cookie and a hell of a shot. I know she’ll be good for our crew. Keep me updated on anything you guys might need down here and if there are any problems.”  
“Aye, aye, ma’am,” he says as he salutes before returning to his duties.  
I turn toward Tali and cross the deck to speak with her. “Hi, Tali.”  
“Hello, Shepard. Is there anything I can help you with?” she questions.  
“Just came to see how you’re settling in and if you have any requisition needs. I know we got food for you but if there’s anything else that you might need, please let me know,” I offer sincerely. “My door’s always open if you think of anything or just need to talk to someone.”  
“Thank you, Shepard. I’ll keep that in mind,” she responds in kind.  
“I should go and check on the others, but first here’s my contact info if you need to message me,” I hold up my ‘tool as I finish my statement. She holds up hers and we swap info. I take my leave out of the door on the right and walk up to Garrus.  
He looks up from his work as I approach. “Commander,” he greets. 'Rather formal, aren’t we?'  
“Shepard is fine, Vakarian,” I address him.  
“Garrus will be fine, Shepard,” he replies.  
I nod. “Your choice, Garrus.”  
An odd rumble comes from him, almost like a sound a human might use when thinking or trying to understand. He shakes his head as if clearing his thoughts. “Need anything, Shepard?”  
“I came by to see if you need any items requisitioned to make your time here more comfortable. I also thought an exchange of contact info would be appropriate,” I say.  
“Well after looking over the sleeping arrangements, a pillow designed for Turian use would be much appreciated,” he responds after a short pause. He holds up his ‘tool for our contact trade then I take down the note of his pillow request.  
“Sounds good. If you think of anything else or if you ever need to talk, my door’s always open so please don’t hesitate to stop by,” I encourage with a smile.  
“Will do, Shepard.” He nods minutely.  
“I should go finish my rounds.” I nod quickly and turn to walk over to Ashley.  
As she sees me approach her posture stiffens and her hand moves to salute. I shake my head and chuckle slightly. “At ease, Williams. Now is not a time for formalities, these are our off-duty hours. I’m here as a friend not as CO.”  
She nods, a bit unsure, “Aye, aye, Skipper.”  
“Good. Now, I’m pretty much doing the go-around. Talking to everyone, making sure everyone has what they need and that everyone’s comfortable,” I look at her expectantly, “Is there anything you would like requisitioned?”  
She seems to think it over before she shakes her head, “Nothing you wouldn’t already be requisitioning for yourself, ma’am.”  
I pause, “Do you need any now?”  
“All stocked up.”  
“If you ever need anything, feminine or otherwise, my door’s open.”  
A nod and smile. “Thank you, Skipper.”  
“Here’s my contact info if you need it.” We swap info and I move on to Wrex.  
He’s leaning against the wall, cleaning the barrel of his gun as I walk up.  
“Shepard.”  
“Wrex?”  
He looks up at me then. He huffs out a breath as he continues the ritual of his cleaning. “Shepard.”  
“Have you made yourself comfortable?” I ask. He grunts. I try again, “Is there anything you’d like me to requisition for you?” Another grunt. My hands find my hips and I put most of my weight on my right leg. “If you don’t want to talk, that’s fine. If you decide you want to, my door’s open. If you need anything, my door’s open. Want anything, door’s open. Just keep it in mind.” My eyes rove over the scars on his face and his bright red crest. I blush a bit and turn to walk away.  
“I’ll keep it in mind, Shepard.”  
A smile creeps onto my face as I keep my pace to the elevator. I step inside, the door closes and I take the one-floor ride up to the mess. I step out and am immediately seen by none other than Alenko.  
“Commander!” he calls out to me, eager to get my attention.  
“Hello, LT,” I try not to be too rude but also not give him any false hope on the romantic front. 'Men complain about women being needy and over-emotional, but men can be just as bad. Especially men like Alenko.'  
“Commander, I was wondering if you had time to talk about our time on the Citadel,” he says, his eyes pleading with me.  
“Sorry, LT. I need to go set course with Joker and get some paperwork done. That reminds me, do you have anything that you need to be requisitioned?”  
He ponders the question for a minute before shaking his head. “Not that I can think of but if I think of something I’ll let you know.” He salutes before returning to whatever he was doing before I walked in. I head up to the bridge, double-time, to get as far from Alenko as quickly as I can.  
When I approach the pilot’s chair, I hear Joker call over his shoulder, “Ready to head out, Shepard?”  
“Yeah, I was thinking we’d head to Feros first. See what we can do about the Geth attack going on out there. That colony is in the most immediate danger,” I reply as I step up beside his seat.  
He begins punching in information as the docking clamps are pulled away and we start moving through space to the relay. “Sounds good, Shepard.”  
“Do you need anything requisitioned, Joker?” I ask.  
“Maybe some decent coffee, but I can’t think of anything else,” he responds.  
I make a note in my ‘tool to get a decent supply of coffee. “Alright, Joker. I’ll keep that in mind.”  
There’s a long pause and I almost start to leave when Joker speaks in a serious, almost quiet voice, “Was that a serious offer, Shepard?”  
“I don’t make offers I don’t mean,” I say simply.  
He sits, staring at me, scrutinizing my face as if to find some trick or deceit on my face. I hold his gaze until he finally realizes I’m completely serious.  
He shakes his head and chuckles lowly, still disbelieving.  
“Whenever you’re ready, my door’s always open, Joker,” I say, then start walking back to my new room… the Captain’s quarters.  
I make it back and Alenko is thankfully not nearby. I disappear quickly into my room and sit at my terminal. I sign in as the new CO and put in the Turian pillow request. There’s a knock and then a buzz as someone presses the room’s comm. I pull up the video and see Ensign Rodriguez with two crates. I stand up from my chair and open the door for the Ensign. He dollies in the two medium crates and I gesture for him to drop them by the desk. He sets the crate down, salutes, and disappears out of my room with the dolly.  
I scan my thumbprint on the biometrics reader on each crate and they open to reveal my purchased items from the day as well as a gift. I start removing and putting away the various items I bought including my stash of snack foods and a new set of armor given to me by the Brass to include my N7 rank as well as my Spectre status. Once the crate is empty I pick it up relatively easily and place it outside to the left of the door. I return to my desk and find an order site for a good, strong coffee and order three fifteen-pound crates for pick up in the Attican Beta cluster at the nearby fuel depot. I use a direct comm line to tell Joker to stop at the fuel depot for a pick-up before continuing to Feros.  
I pull up a mission report document and type in the information on Feros that I know. The basic information finished, I pull my hair down and lay out my comfy clothes for my return. I feel the ship coming to a stop so I head to the cargo bay to meet the delivery crew. As I step out of the elevator I see a worker wheeling the cart of crates into the bay. I approach her and take the datapad from the top of the crates. I sign off on the delivery and call out to Wrex, “Wrex, can I get some help moving these crates?”  
He grunts but trudges up to the crates and picks up all three easily before turning toward the elevator. I pass the dock worker her datapad and rush after Wrex. The worker leaves as I make it into the elevator. The short ride up seems to drag on forever but also seems to have ended too soon. Wrex drops the crates on the counter, pulls them open, and turns to leave. I call after him while quickly putting away the newly acquired ground coffee, “How did you know they needed to come to the kitchen?”  
“The same way I know you have the hots for someone on the ship,” he grumbles and continues toward the elevator.  
I blush. “You don’t know who?” I follow after him.  
“Can’t smell that unless you act on it,” he says.  
“Would you like to have an actual conversation now?” I ask.  
His pace stills and I nearly run into him. He turns to me and says gruffly, “No.” He turns back and steps into the elevator.  
I try to hide my disappointment as I say, “Alright, Wrex.”   
I turn and go straight to my quarters. Getting to Feros, even in FTL will take at least two days. No one to talk to, nothing to do. I walk over to my bed and strip off my armor and under-armor then slip into my comfy clothes: a gray N7 t-shirt and some black yoga pants. I turn away from my bed and flop backward onto it. I fold my arms behind my head and stare at the ceiling, taking some time to relax. I look at my ‘tool 18-hundred galactic standard, I’ll need to eat soon. I set an alarm for 19:30 and take the opportunity for a short nap.


	17. Heading to Feros

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Smut ahead read at your own risk. If you do read it please give feedback on how I can make it better. This is my first published attempt at smut and it's first-person so hopefully, that doesn't bother anyone.

Bzzzt! Bzzzt! Bzzzt!  
I crack my eyes open and dismiss my alarm. I sit up and stretch my back out before standing up and continuing my stretching. After a satisfying stretch I cross my room and step out into the mess. I pull out a bag of coffee and brew a cup for Joker and I brew myself some tea from my own private stash. I put away the coffee bag and grab the two mugs. I walk my way up to the cockpit keeping my stride steady and my footsteps light.  
As I take my last few strides, I hear Joker say, “I smell coffee, like real coffee.” He looks back and smiles a little.   
“Thought you might need a pick-me-up. I figured this was appropriate.” I stop next to him and hand him the cup of coffee then walk over to the co-pilot seat. Sitting down, I begin sipping on my tea and watching the mass effect field and space move past us as we move toward our destination.  
“We should be arriving at Feros within 48 hours, Shepard,” Joker relays the information to me.  
“Sounds good, Joker. You should take a break and get some dinner in the mess before too long.” I take a sip of my tea and look at Joker over the rim of my mug.  
“I usually wait until the end of the shift when there’s not as much foot traffic. Keeps complications and embarrassing moments to a minimum,” Joker says, sounding a bit shy.  
“Well there are a few things we can do about that: 1) I can bring food up here for you, 2) you can come down and eat with me, 3) you can do what you usually do, or 4) you can come to my room and I’ll be waiting with dinner. Can’t have you eating alone all the time,” I list off his options with my not-so-subtle offers thrown in. I take a long sip of my tea waiting for his reaction.  
He stays quiet for several moments before he says in a tone I can’t quite decipher, “I wouldn’t mind going down and eating with you. I also wouldn’t object to us eating in your room.” I see a faint blush on his cheeks and watch him tug the bill of his hat down as if trying to hide his face.  
I consider calling him out on it but decide not to. “Just say when.” Another long sip. I watch him swallow down the last of his coffee before he turns to me and nods. I take a quick gulp of my tea and stand up from the co-pilot seat. I step around the seat to stand behind Joker’s seat at the same time he hoists himself out of his seat and grabs his crutches. We maintain a respectful distance as we walk down to the mess in relative silence. He’s trying his best not to limp and to walk straight-backed. I shake my head at his macho-ism and stifle a chuckle.  
We make it to the stairs and I walk slightly ahead of him due to the narrowness of the staircase and my ability to break his fall should there be a problem. We make it to the mess without a mishap and I gesture for him to take a seat while I make a meal.  
Luckily the mess is mostly empty. I walk into my room and grab a few things from my stash before I walk back into the mess and start water boiling. I add a pinch of salt to the water. Thank goodness salt is a commodity and not a rarity. I go about preparing the strainer, chicken (or chicken substitute, not really sure), and plates while waiting for the water to boil. As soon as the water gets to a good boil, I pour in my pasta and wait for the noodles to reach al dente.  
As I’m waiting, Joker approaches. I turn the heat to low and strain the noodles then add the sauce and chicken. I return the pot to the eye and let it heat while I stir. I turn to Joker and smile. “Hope it’s not taking too long.”  
“Not at all, just a bit… anxious, I suppose,” he says, trying to casually check out the room.  
“Any reason? We’re just eating together, that’s all anyone is gonna see,” I say as I give the pot another stir before killing the eye. I pull the first plate over and load it up with one of my favorite dishes and set it down before grabbing the other and loading it up as well. I stash the leftovers in the back of the fridge and pull out two bottles of apple juice; tucking the bottles in the crook of my arm, I grab the two plates and gesture for Joker to get the door to my quarters. He starts the opening sequence and the doors swoosh open to reveal my room. I walk in and set the plates on the table toward the center of my room before setting down the juice as well.  
I turn around and see Joker is standing in the doorway, looking nervous and uncomfortable. I begin to worry. “If you’re not okay with this we can eat in the mess.”  
He shakes his head and steps forward into the room fully. “No, no. It’s not that, it’s, uh, I kind of just don’t believe what’s going on.”  
I smirk and pull out his chair, gesturing for him to sit and walk the few steps to my own. He hobbles to his seat and sits down gingerly.  
I grab my fork and spear a couple noodles and a piece of chicken, taking the bite and enjoying the flavor of the alfredo on my tongue. I watch as Joker takes his own bite and continue watching as he shovels a few more forkfuls into his mouth in quick succession. “I take it you like it?” I tease with a smile.  
“Geez, Shepard. If I didn’t watch you cook it I’d swear you ordered it from a restaurant,” Joker says after swallowing his mouth full of pasta.  
“We’re in private now, Joker. You can call me Lili or Lilianna, your choice,” I offer, trying to curb the formality. I unscrew the lid to my apple juice and take a sip.  
He thinks over what I say for a few moments, then says, “Then I guess you can call me Jeff.” He unscrews the lid to his apple juice and takes a couple gulps.  
I smile. “Okay, Jeff.” I test the name out. It’s a little strange but it’s not bad. I take a few bites of pasta and he does the same.  
“So, Lili, where did you learn to cook like this?” he asks.  
“Both of my parents are in the Alliance. I was moved around between boarding schools depending on which parent was stationed where and who was deployed and all that mess. You know how all that goes. Anyway, one of my boarding schools was an all-female prep school where they teach us all skills ‘women should have’ and one of those skills was cooking. I learned a lot of things in that class including that I enjoy cooking,” I answer his query.  
“An all-girl school? Hot. Did you wear a uniform?” Joker teases, wiggling his eyebrows. Glad he’s finally getting comfortable.  
“As a matter of fact, I did. I take it you want to see?” I ask. He nods quickly as I take another bite of my food. I bring up my ‘tool and find one of my prep school photos. As I turn to let him see the photo, I think back to the day it was taken.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My roommate, Chelsea, and I are getting ready for picture day in our adjoined bathroom. I’m straightening my long black and red locks. I can feel the warmth of the tips of my hair against my waist as I take the straightener to section after section of it. I look at Chelsea and see her bright green eyes studying her face, looking for any flaw in her perfectly done make up. I nudge her and reassure her, “Your make up looks flawless, Chels. We’re gonna rock these pictures.”  
“Girl, I know but I am SO nervous. This is the first time I’ve had a girlfriend and I wanna look gorgeous for her,” she says as she starts to take a brush to her platinum blonde bob.  
“Please, Chels. Any girl is lucky to have you. Amber is one lucky bitch,” I say playfully.  
“You know you could get any girl at this school if you swung this way,” Chels teases.  
“You wish I swung like that, you’d be all over this.” I gesture to my white short-sleeve blouse, short red plaid skirt, and knee-high black socks. I was always on the shorter side, Chels was easily six inches taller and she was still considered relatively short.  
“You know it, Lil.” She winks and snickers. “Just don’t tell Amber, she’s already jealous we share a room.”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Lili…? Lili?!”  
I come back to the present and see Joker’s worried face. “Sorry, Jeff. Just reminiscing.”  
He seems to relax at that and repeats his statement, “You look hot in that; too bad you probably don’t have it anymore.”  
I think for a moment, trying to remember if I have it and where it might be, “I’m not sure honestly but if I find it I’ll let you know.” I wink playfully at him, then return to my eating. I look at Joker’s plate and see he only has a few bites left. I look at my own plate and see I’ve eaten most of it.  
I watch him take his last three bites while I finish off my last five. We sit together for a minute before I grab both of our plates and stand to take them to the kitchen. Joker picks up his crutches and stands as well. I quirk an eyebrow before asking, “Are you planning on leaving, Jeff?”  
He shuffles a moment and a blush rises up on his cheeks. He asks, “Did you want me to stay?”  
“I thought you would. I’m just taking the dishes out, you can make yourself comfortable. If you want to stay, that is.”  
He thinks about it and seems to hesitate before saying, “I, uh, I think I will stay.”  
I smile a bit and turn to take the dishes out. The doors swish open and I step out, rounding the corner into the mess… and run right into Alenko’s chest. I step back to catch my balance and put some much-needed distance between the two of us.  
He salutes before speaking, “Commander! I was hoping I’d run into you.”  
“The reason, Lieutenant?” I say in a no-nonsense tone.  
A blush flares in his cheeks and he begins to stutter. I step around him as he flounders for words and put the dishes in the ship’s sterilizer. I turn back towards Alenko as he finally finds his voice, “I was hoping we could finally have that talk about everything that’s been going on.”  
“I would but I’m prepping the file for the Feros mission and plan to hit the sack early. Maybe we can de-brief tomorrow.”  
His face falls a bit but I can’t find it in me to care. I step around him and take another step before I feel a hand around my wrist. He pulls slightly causing me to turn towards him. “Wait, Commander. I-I… I would really like to be able to spend some one-on-one time with you.”  
I pull my arm free. “We’ll see what can be squeezed in, Lieutenant. I should go,” I insist and turn back, quickly disappearing back into my room and setting the security protocols in action. The glowing turns from green to red and I turn around to see Joker sitting on the edge of my bed. I smile and dim the lights as I walk across the room and sit a few inches away from him.  
He turns toward me. “Lili?”  
I turn to face him fully and see a bit of a blush through his beard. I can see his hands fidgeting trying to keep from messing with his hat. “Yes, Jeff?”  
“Can I, um, can I kiss you?” his blush flares up as the question leaves his lips. I look at his lips for a moment, they’re not as full as mine but they definitely have an appeal as far as humans are concerned. I nod and lean forward.  
He meets me halfway. I feel his lips on mine, a little rough but very pleasant. Either he’s had a lot of practice or he’s naturally really good at this. I push into the kiss and graze my tongue against his bottom lip. He opens his mouth quickly and I slip my tongue past his lips. I feel the bed dip a little as he scoots closer to me; I continue my exploration of his mouth with my tongue. I can tell he’s less focused on the kiss than touching me when I feel his hands pushing my shirt up.  
He breaks the kiss long enough to say, “Please tell me this okay and not a dream.”  
“Not a dream,” I say breathlessly. I pull off my shirt and toss it on a chair before kissing him again.  
He returns the kiss eagerly though his hands barely inch up my exposed skin. I take his right hand in my left and guide it to my breast. He gives it a light squeeze and I nip his bottom lip causing him to groan.  
I look him in the eyes. “Do you want this?”  
His lips are a deeper shade of pink than before and his skin is lightly flushed, much like I assume of myself. “Yes, Lili. Definitely.”  
I slip his hat off and go for his shirt. He looks a bit embarrassed and shy as he stutters out, “I can undress myself; I don’t need help.”  
I shake my head. “I’m not doing this because I think you need help, I’m doing this because I want you naked now.” I grip the hem of his shirt and pull it up and over his head. I look over his body and bite my lip. His chest is toned and his stomach could be a washboard with a little work. I am so glad he’s on board with this because damned if I’d be able to stop myself if I ever saw him shirtless any other time. I look up at his face and see the downcast look. I hook my finger under his chin and tilt his face up. I press my lips to his and slide one hand down his toned torso. He seems to relax and kisses back then bites my bottom lip. I let out a low moan and begin tugging off his pants. With a little wiggling and a swift pull I have his pants pulled down to his knees and see him looking almost painfully erect. “Do you always go commando, Jeff?”  
He blushes and says, “Most of the time; it’s the most comfortable when flying.” I kneel down on the floor and remove his boots before pulling his pants off the rest of the way.  
I stand up and kick off my old tennis shoes then shimmy my yoga pants off. I help him scoot back into the center of my bed then strip off my panties. I crawl up the bed and hover over him. He looks up at me with lust-filled eyes and I plant a firm, heavy kiss on his lips before I reach onto the blocky headboard and rip open a condom package. I roll it down onto his dick in a few quick movements. I hold him steady as I slowly lower myself, his hands grip my hips tightly. We both let out breathy groans. Wow it’s been awhile or he’s just bigger than I thought or both. Probably both.  
I let myself settle lightly on him before I lift myself up and slowly slide down again. I continue like this slowly picking up speed until I find the right rhythm and just enough speed to have us both gasping for breath. He shallowly thrusts up into me as best he can. The sounds of his groans and breathless ‘fuck’s causing me to near my orgasm. I feel his thumb brush up against my clit and my breathing hitches, my knees feel weak. I continue riding him when his thumb brushes me just the right way and I moan a little louder than I mean to. His shallow thrusts lose their pace as I feel him nearing his orgasm. I roll my hips as I slide down onto him again causing his thumb to brush harder against me and we both moan.  
I see his face tighten in concentration as he fights his release. He begins rubbing my clit in quick, tight circles. My legs tense and my head falls back as I moan out, “Oh, Jeff.” He doubles his efforts and I brace myself as my orgasm hits and I let out a drawn out, “Fuck, Jeff.” He keeps me coasting on the high as I feel him twitch inside me finally letting himself have his release. I roll to the right and lay on my back trying to catch my breath. “That was the best orgasm I’ve ever had while being on top. Probably my best orgasm at all.”  
“Don’t tell me you’re a virgin or something like that, I might not be able to look at you the same way,” he jokes, taking a deep breath and letting out a content sigh.  
“Hah, you wish. No, definitely not anywhere near a virgin,” I say easily. “First human I’ve had sex with, in, oh, about 10 years.”  
His eyebrow quirks and his lips pull into a smirk. “Guess that makes me special, huh?”  
“You could say that,” I tease.  
We fall into a comfortable silence. After a few minutes, I sit up and lean off the short bed. I grab my panties and pull them on.  
“Okay, okay. Two questions. First question: Are you going to make me leave?” He pauses, prompting me to answer.  
“No, I’m not making you do the walk of shame.”  
“Okay, good. Second question: Are you opposed to cuddling?”  
I look back at him, propped up slightly on his elbows. “You want to cuddle?” I ask, surprised.  
“Well, yeah. I’m fragile, but cuddling, I can handle.”  
I giggle a little at that (yes, giggle. I’m secure enough to admit that). “Yeah, we can cuddle.” He sets an alarm on his omni-tool before lying back and holding his arms open. I lie back and cuddle into his side, draping my leg lightly over his. One arm tightens around my shoulders and the other arm drapes across my waist. I quickly fall asleep, the most comfortable I’ve been in a while.


	18. To Feros

I wake up and feel cooling sheets next to me. I crack my eyes open and confirm my thoughts. He’s taken control of the helm again.  
I sit up, stretching. I slip on my t-shirt and yoga pants before gathering my toiletries and a new set of clothes. I walk to the door and let it cycle open before walking out and heading for the bathrooms. I step in front of the women’s room and the scan reads my biometrics then slides open. I walk over to the lockers and store my new clothes inside. I strip down and place the clothes into a bag. I take my shampoo, conditioner, and body wash to the showers. I place the bottles on the floor in an orderly fashion and flip on the water. It warms in seconds and I begin soaking my hair. I pop open the first bottle, squeeze out the perfect amount, and begin scrubbing my hair. I rinse my hair thoroughly before moving to the second bottle and doing the same. I let the conditioner sit in my hair as I scrub myself down with my favorite floral body wash. I begin imagining a normal life in a house with a yard and a garden filled with flowers like the exotic ones my body wash smells of. I imagine what my life might have been like if my mom had lived and I wasn’t adopted. I start rinsing my hair and body feeling guilty, I’ve never told Dad about these thoughts, I love him and would hate to hurt his feelings.  
My eyes start watering as I turn off the water, but I don’t let the tears fall. ‘Stop acting like this, Lil. Get ahold of yourself! Your life wouldn’t be all that different anyway, you would’ve still joined the navy as soon as you figured out you aren’t nearly as attracted to humans as you are to aliens… Still, Joker was a good fuck.’ I shrug and nod, agreeing with myself. I grab a towel from the stocked towel racks and begin drying myself off while crossing the room. I open my locker at the same time the door swishes open, I look up to see Ash walking in. I continue drying off, my shyness over my body long-since disappeared. “Morning, Ash. How’s everything so far today?”  
I hear a deep inhale. “Permission to speak freely, ma’am?”  
I pull on my sports bra and grab my panties. I turn to face her and pull them on quickly. “We’re off duty right now, you always have permission to speak freely with me.”  
“Right, uh, sorry, Skipper. I’m just, um, I’m a little uncomfortable with the aliens having free roam of the ship. I’m not sure—I don’t know how much I trust them, that their intentions are purely to our benefit.” I can tell she feels uncomfortable bringing this to my attention.  
“You have every right to feel that way, Ash. I know they’re unfamiliar and not the usual detail for you, but I need you to put aside personal feelings and get to know them because they’re going to be watching your back and you’ll be watching theirs.  
I don’t completely understand your position of distrust for them, but I do understand being uncertain of the unfamiliar, so you need to make them familiar. I don’t know them anymore than you do but I’m more open to trusting them and you need to open up to them. Spend some time on the shooting range with Wrex, Garrus or even Tali. Maybe we can have a girls’ night with Tali sometime, so we can all start becoming friends.  
I’m not going to order you to do any of this, but I think it would be best for team cohesion,” I say, hoping she’ll try to loosen up and give them all a chance.  
She has a serious look on her face, thinking over everything I said. She starts slowly nodding and her eyes refocus on me. “I’ll try my best, Skipper.”  
“That’s all I ask, Ash. If you decide it’s a yes on the girls’ night, ping me and let me know. I’ll set it up.”  
“Will do, Skipper.” Ash nods then steps up to the locker beside mine and stows her clothes. She begins stripping down as I pull out my black leggings and pull them on.  
I wrap my hair up in my towel and grab my bag of clothes. I walk over to the shower I used and grab my bottles. I walk out and head towards my room dropping off my clothes and bottles. I go to the mess and start the coffee and tea brewing. I towel my hair dry as best I can and step over to my room and toss the towel in. I breeze back into the mess, grab the mugs, and head up to the bridge.  
As I make it halfway down the hallway to the bridge, I hear Alenko’s voice, “You’re in an unusually good mood, Joker. What’s got you so happy?”  
The smirk in his voice is subtle, “Just had a really good night sleep is all. Best sleep I’ve had in a while.”  
I take the last few steps onto the bridge and around Joker’s chair. “Morning, boys. How’s everything going up here?” I ask as I hand Joker his mug of coffee. I feel his fingers brush against mine as he takes the cup.  
He takes a long drink of his coffee and groans, “I’ll never get tired of this coffee. Everything’s going fine, making good progress. Should arrive just before nightfall planet-side.”  
I take a sip of my tea. “Good. The team can get a good night sleep before we go groundside.” I address Alenko without turning my head, “Alenko, you and Ash will be on watch when my team goes groundside to make sure no Geth make it onto the Normandy. Joker, I want you to run full ship sweeps periodically to make sure nothing infiltrates the Normandy. I doubt we can be breached but better safe than sorry.”  
“Aye, aye, ma’am,” Alenko acknowledges.  
“You got it, Shepard,” Joker says.  
I nod and smile. “Alright. I’m off to brief my ground team.” I turn and head to the cargo bay.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Well the commander seems to be in a better mood today,” Kaidan observes.  
“You think so? Seems just the same as yesterday to me,” I say casually.  
“I tried to talk to her about everything that’s been going on yesterday around dinner time, but she rushed off and said she was getting the mission report ready and planning to hit the rack early, seemed to be pretty peeved. No idea why though,” he explained.  
“Maybe she was just tired or frustrated,” I offer. ‘Wow she really doesn’t like Kaidan…’  
I see Kaidan nod out of the corner of my eye. His face portraying how deeply he’s thinking about this.  
I let my mind wander as I go through the routine of checking the board. ‘If I’m the first human Shepard’s had sex with in 10 years, I wonder how many species she’s had sex with and which species…’

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I step out of the elevator and see Ash working at the workbench like usual, Wrex cleaning his shotgun, and absolutely no sign of Garrus. I shrug and walk over to Ash.  
She looks up as I approach and snaps to attention.  
“At ease, Chief. Just briefing you on the upcoming mission,” I say.  
“Aye, aye, ma’am.” She relaxes her stance, falling to parade rest.  
“I’m having you and Alenko stay on ship to protect against any breaches. You’ll watch down here, anything happens you call Alenko down. If he calls, you get up there double time, use maintenance shafts if you have to. I know that elevator is slow,” I inform her.  
“You got it, Skipper.”  
“Good, we’ll be docking by tonight. Grab a good meal and hit the rack once we land. Everyone has to be prepared,” I order.  
“Ma’am, yes, ma’am,” she says with a salute.  
“As you were, Chief.”  
She nods and turns back to the workbench.  
I turn and catch a movement out of the corner of my eye. I turn my head toward the mako and see Garrus sliding himself out from under it with some grease and a turian smile on his face.  
I walk over to him as he’s going to pull himself up and offer my hand. He takes it and I give a firm pull at the same time he pushes up. Judging from the force he used, he didn’t expect me to do much which almost resulted in us falling over. I step back to balance out the force.  
He looks sheepishly at me and his subharmonics thrum with apologetic tones, “Uh, hi, Shepard. Thanks for the assist.”  
“Not a problem, Garrus. And it’s okay that you underestimated my strength too,” I tease. He rumbles a silent question, causing me to laugh a little. “You’re not the first Turian I’ve been around, and neither was Nihlus. I’ve gotten pretty good with subharmonics and face-reading.”  
His face becomes very serious, thinking over the information. Then he asks, “What other species have you been around enough to learn nuances?”  
“Well Asari and Drell are similar enough to humans that I can read them well. I’ve been around Turians, Krogan, Asari, Drell, and Hanar. Of those species besides the Asari and Drell, Hanar have been the easiest to figure out because of their bioluminescence.” Garrus nods along to my observations.  
“I imagine Turians were the most difficult for you,” Garrus guesses.  
“Actually, Turians and Krogan were equally difficult but for different reasons. Turians because of the plates and mandibles. Krogan because they avoid the use of emotions until they become close with another being. They’re not all just anger, bloodlust, and bitterness,” I say, my voice soft with memories.  
Garrus hums in confusion and deep thought.  
“I’ve also been around a few Quarians but never got close enough to learn much about them. They have a great distrust for other species because of how they’ve been treated,” I add to my previous statements.  
Garrus speaks up supplying what I can only hope is just old prejudices pounded into him and not what he actually thinks, “Quarians are more or less excluded from galactic society because of their creation of the Geth and they deserve that. It was illegal from the beginning to create AIs and they knew that when they did it.”  
“Garrus, humans were trying to create AIs over a hundred years ago, before they ever joined the galactic community. Have Turians never tried to push the bounds of what they knew was possible? I guarantee the Salarians and Asari have tried constructing an AI at one point or another. I honestly feel like their punishing the Quarians for doing something they couldn’t figure out for themselves,” I rant, and I know I’m ranting but damned if I can stop myself when anyone can be so closed-minded. I hear a rough chuckle from, who I’m sure is, Wrex.  
Garrus wears a contemplative look and stays quiet for a long time. Good, maybe he’ll start forming his own opinions instead of rattling off whatever he was taught in Cipritine. “Anyway, what I was coming to tell you is that you’re on the groundside team when we hit Feros so have your supplies ready and get a hot meal and a good night sleep tonight, so you’ll be ready in the morning.”  
I turn around and see Wrex nonchalantly cleaning his gun. I walk over to talk to him, stopping in front of him. He sniffs the air, it would’ve been subtle if I wouldn’t have been so used to Krogan behavior. “Shepard,” he says, his voice rough and deep, and so hot.  
That’s promising. “Wrex.” I smile a little. “I wanted to let you know going groundside with me at Feros. So hot meal and a good night sleep tonight. Be ready to head out in the morning.”  
“Got it, Shepard.” A pause; he adds, “You really believe what you said to the Turian? About Krogan?”  
I nod. “I managed to befriend a couple of Krogan, learned a few things, hopefully things that will be useful.”  
He looks at me with interest and hums a quiet, “Hmm…”  
“Would you mind talking with me for a bit? Maybe after I let Tali know about Feros, you and I could sit down and talk,” I ask, hopeful. “You can tell me about some of those scars you have.”  
He breathes a deep, sharp breath through his nose and I know he smells my arousal. He nods. “Maybe so, Shepard.”  
“If you want, we can wait until after the mission to talk. Just say when. You can ping me if you want.” I hold up my ‘tool. “Here’s my contact information.” I transfer the information to his ‘tool and he sends his to mine. I turn and head to the drive core to speak with Tali, a smile on my face.  
The doors swoosh open and I walk up to Tali. “Hi, Tali. Are you busy?”  
She jumps a bit and turns toward me. “Oh, hi, Shepard. No, I’m not busy. Is there something you need?” she asks.  
“Matter-of-fact, I needed to tell you I’m taking you groundside with me tomorrow, so you need to have a hot meal and a good rest tonight, so you’ll be in fighting shape first thing in the morning. Make sure you eat a good breakfast too because we don’t know how long the mission will take and I can’t have my team starving halfway through the mission. The Geth aren’t gonna give us a lunch break so we probably won’t eat again until the mission is over,” I rattle off the information to her.  
“You’re taking me groundside already? That’s surprising,” she says quietly.  
“Why wouldn’t I? I’ve seen you in action. You’re a good shot and I know we’re fighting Geth so I’m sure we could use your help. Oh, and I wanted to extend an invitation for us to have girls’ night, so we can talk and get to know each other, it can be just you and I or I can invite Ash to come too. I’m sure we’ll have more than one so if you just want it to be us two the first time we can have Ash over another time. Just ping me when you decide on that and I’ll set it up. You’re welcome to take as long as you need to make up your mind.” I take a deep breath. Wow what a mouth full, I’m talking an awful lot. Well Tali is a quiet type, she doesn’t hold much in conversation. Probably just the shyness, hopefully she’ll get over that.  
“I, uh, thank you, Shepard. I’ll think it over. And thank you for making me feel welcome. I was kind of worried about coming aboard a human ship like this but I’m glad I did,” she admits.  
“I’m glad to have you aboard. And don’t forget I’m always here if you need me,” I remind her with a smile.  
“I remember, Shepard. Thank you.”  
I nod to her. “See you later, Tali.” I turn and head back out the doors and to the elevator. I ride up, thinking about getting to hear Wrex’s stories and maybe see all his scars. I rub my thighs together slightly. This is so not fair, it usually takes a few days for me to get worked up like this after a sex orgasm. If I just got myself off, I could understand but it was SEX. This shouldn’t be happening again.  
The elevator slides open and I head up toward the bridge. I pass Pressley as I walk through the CIC and watch as Kaidan heads down on the other side of the galaxy map. I walk onto the bridge and see the approach to a dark, gray-green planet. Feros.


	19. After Feros

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we've got some sparring with Wrex. (Please give me your honest opinions on the sparring because I've never written anything like this.  
> And we have some masturbation (only Shepard, though I might write some Wrex masturbation soon).
> 
> I beg for the opinions of my peers so I may better myself as a writer.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this I'm sorry it took so long.  
> Translations are at the bottom.

I storm onto the Normandy and strip to my undersuit, practically throwing my armor into the locker, metal clangs against metal.  I’m in the elevator before anyone can say anything to me.  In my state of agitation, the elevator feels as if it’s moving slower than normal so I pace until the elevator door opens.  I make a bee-line for my room; I peel off the undersuit, pulling on some yoga pants and a loose tank top, and I’m back in the elevator, going to the cargo hold.

 _Damn the giant mutant space plant.  Fucking Thorian almost forced me to wipe out an entire colony.  At least I managed to save most of them…  But damn the beacon, for screwing with my head. Damn the Protheans, for not making the damned beacon compatible with non-Protheans.  Damn that Asari, for poking around in my head.  Damn the Council for wanting to meet with me_ immediately _after the mission. Fuck that, if I don’t work off this anger, who knows what I might say to the Council.  They can wait._

When the door opens again, I step out and go over to the table by the lockers.  I wrap my hands and call out to the present crew members, “Anyone want to spar with me?”

I look over my shoulder at everyone present and watch everyone look at each other before Wrex shrugs and says, “Let’s go, Shepard.”

I can see Ash in the corner of my eye, fighting a war with herself over whether to speak up or not.  She stays quiet.  _Good, I don’t want to have to get into the whole trusting aliens bullshit._

Garrus fidgets but won’t even look at me.   _He knows I’m on edge in more ways than one.  Then again, so does Wrex…  Of course, Wrex also thinks he can beat me.  Or at least thinks that I can’t do anything to him._

I smirk.  “Alright, Wrex, let’s go.”  And just like that, the crew clears the floor.

We circle each other, Wrex refusing to make the first move.  I analyze every slight movement, every twitch, every look.  I lunge, throwing my shoulder into his right side.

The impact surprises him and changes his center of gravity slightly.  He turns toward me, only to find I’m no longer there.

I pull myself up his back and grip his hump between my thighs; throwing my weight backward, I let go and land in a back handspring.  This time he loses his balance, flailing to catch it, but ultimately falling onto his back.

I approach his side and ask, “Are you going to actually fight me or did you just want to be a punching bag?”

His nostrils flare, unintentionally scenting the air, and his eyes darken.  His arm swings out and knocks my legs from under me.

I tuck my arms and lean into the fall, rolling my body to avoid injury.  I follow the roll, ending up on my feet, and get into a defensive stance.  He lifts himself up and towers over me.

“Shepard, I’m warning you,” his voice rumbles and it makes me hornier. “Karak.”

I bite my bottom lip. “Obeca?”

That catches him off-guard and he growls a little. “Radi.”

I suppress a shiver. I tuck and roll, putting myself next to him; I drive my elbow into the back of his knee and he drops onto his back again.  “Getting tired, old man?” I tease him.

His arm catches my legs, this time knocking me on top of him.  He pins my legs to his side, making me lay across him.  I push up off him causing me to kneel against his side.  “Give in?” he asks, his voice gravelly.

I smile and press into the side of his neck, one of the few krogan pressure points, just enough to render his arms useless.  His arms go limp, releasing me from his hold.  I push myself up and move out of the way before his secondary nervous system kicks in to control his arms.

He growls, surprised that I know so much about Krogan biology, and rolls onto his stomach before lifting himself up. “You win, Shepard.  This time.  Slede pu, priva.”

I nod, a smirk playing on my lips.  _I feel much better._  I welcome the burning in my muscles from the exertion, _been far too long since I sparred with a Krogan_.

The elevator door opens and I step inside.  I ride up and grab my toiletries from my room before walking to the bathroom for a much-needed shower.  I ping Joker to scan the system and let me know if anything interesting is found.  I step into the bathroom and set about getting ready for my shower.

 

I enter my room and lock it down.  I strip off my yoga pants and panties before lying back on the bed.

I slide one hand up my stomach to my breast and massage it gently through my t-shirt before switching to the other and kneading it.  I slide the same hand down my body and begin rubbing slow circles on my clit.  My other hand slowly slides up my thigh, fingers grazing the sensitive inner part before I press two fingers into me and curling them slightly.  I pick up the speed on my clit slightly and let out a breathy moan.

I continue my ministrations slowly building up to a climax. Wrex’s name is on my lips, in every breath.  At first a near-silent prayer but the volume steadily increases.  I have to focus to make sure I don’t get too loud but my building orgasm makes it hard.

I add a third finger as I continue rubbing my clit; wishing it was Wrex’s tongue or cock instead.  I increase the speed of my three fingers.  Pressing against and spreading my walls while the rubbing on my clit begins to steadily increase.  “Wrex, please,” the moan leaves my lips.

I imagine his low, rumbling voice cursing in Urdnot-Tuchankan and the vibrations coursing through my body.  I imagine him flipping me over and practically rutting me from behind, his tongue on my neck.  His knot inside me.  How much better it will be with someone I care about even if he never feels the same way.  That’s when it hits me, my climax, and all I can think about is what his face would look like in this moment.

 

I come down from my high and get dressed again.  Ever ready to be Commander Shepard.  I drop my security measures and leave the room.  _First things first, let’s get this smell off my hands._

Disappearing into the bathroom, I scrub my hands so at least the species with weaker noses won’t know what I’ve been doing.  _It would be fun to tease Wrex with though._

I half-jog up the stairs to the CIC before continuing to the QEC to talk to the Council.

As soon as I step up to the console, the Council appears and starts in.

“As a Spectre, you are to report to us _immediately_ after missions. Not whenever you wish.  As for your mission, we demand for you to consult with us before exterminating something that could be of value, such as the Thorian,” Sparatus is the first to talk. His dual tones ringing in agitation and indignance.

“Spectre Shepard, we need you to understand that, while you are essentially a free agent, you still need to keep us updated on your missions and—” Tevos is cut off by Valern.

“We make important decisions,” Valern’s fast-paced, almost-nasal sounding voice ends sharply, indicating not to argue.

However, I’ve never been one to keep quiet. “Councilors, the Thorian was a menace and nearly led to the destruction of a colony.  I did what I had to and I will not apologize.  You initiated me and gave me the privileges of a Spectre and I will use them to the best of my ability.  As for immediate contact, if you want me debriefing you while I’m on an adrenaline rush from battle, I’ll gladly do so and you’ll find out why I survived on Elysium that day.”  I look at my omnitool and decide it’s time to end the conversation.  “Have a nice day, Councilors.”  I cut the line and leave the room.

 

I walk back down the stairs and into the kitchen. I look through what’s stocked in the kitchen.  I start a pot of coffee for the crew and pull out ingredients to make pizza.  _Don’t have actual tomatoes but I can make do with what I do have._

After about half an hour, preparing the marinara sauce and pizza dough, the assembled pizza is put in the oven.  I begin preparing the next.

Two hours later, there’s enough pizza for the crew; including a dextro pizza that I hope tastes good.  I ping Garrus and Tali about the pizza and set it separately so there’s no confusion.  I fix two plates, grab a few napkins, and head up to the helm.

 

I hear an exaggerated sniffing sound then the voice of the usually sarcastic pilot, “Do I smell pizza?”  His voice disbelieving, but excited.

“Good nose, Joker,” I tease. Glancing around, I see the coast is clear.  “Hey, Jeff.”  I hand him his plate before taking the co-pilot seat.  I set the napkins on a console between us and lift my pizza to my mouth.  A moan comes from Jeff, just before I take my own bite.  “I take it you like the pizza?”  I take my own bite and nod approvingly.

“Like might be an understatement.  You keep spoiling me with food and I might never leave.” He sits enjoying his pizza.

“When I retire from military service you will always be welcome at my house and I’ll make sure there’s always food for you.”  Though the thought does cross my mind that I may not make it to retirement and the idea of retiring, having that house and garden, seems to dim and fade in the face of war with a machine that wants to destroy the galaxy as we know it.

I hear a small pinging sound and look down at my ‘tool.  I pull up the message just as another one comes in.  The first one reads:

From: Garrus

To: Shepard

 

That “pizza” thing you made was pretty good.  Where did you learn to cook dextro food?

 

From: Shepard

To: Garrus

 

I actually didn’t get much in the way of training with dextro food.  I’m glad it turned out well, I was worried it wouldn’t.

 

The second message reads:

From: Tali

To: Shepard

 

I appreciate the inclusion when you prepared dinner.  Even after thorough decontamination, it tasted better than other foods I’ve had.  As for a girl’s night, I’d love to have one here in a few days.  We can watch 'Fleet and Flotilla'.

 

From: Shepard

To: Tali

 

Inclusion is the cornerstone of any friendship.  I’m glad you liked the food.  A few days from now sounds great, I’ll get together things we’ll need.  'Fleet and Flotilla' sounds great.  I’ll find a movie or two that we can watch together as well.

 

_PING!_

From: Garrus

To: Shepard

 

That’s really surprising. Dextro food is usually difficult for levo-based life to be able to just pick up.

I was also wondering if you could teach me some of what you’ve learned about the different species you’ve been around.  I learned a lot as a C-Sec officer but only about species that were regularly there like the Salarians, Asari, and Turians.  I had started picking up things about humans before I left but I hadn’t gotten very far.

 

A smile comes to my lips as I respond quickly:

From: Shepard

To: Garrus

 

I’d be happy to teach you some of the things I’ve learned.  Maybe you can teach me about Salarians a little.  I haven’t spent much time around them.

 

From: Garrus

To: Shepard

 

Sounds good to me, Shepard.

 

From: Tali

To: Shepard

 

I can’t wait for our girl’s night.  Let me know if there’s anything I should bring.

Ashley can come if she wants to but it really seems like she doesn’t like me.

 

From: Shepard

To: Tali

 

She’s only ever really been around humans; she just needs time to adjust to having other species around.  I’ll see if she’s ready to have a girl’s night, if not it’ll just be me and you and we’ll have Ashley over next time.

 

I send a quick message to Ashley.

From: Shepard

To: Ashley

 

Girl’s night in three days barring a high priority mission.  If you’re not ready that’s fine.  Just let me know.

 

_PING! That was fast._

From: Wrex

To: Shepard

 

If you want to hear a story come see me.

 

I stand up abruptly causing Jeff to jump slightly.

“Sorry, Jeff.  I didn’t mean to startle you.”  I shuffle my feet a little, try to figure out what to say.  I blurt out, “I should go.”  I grab the plates from dinner and head for the kitchen. I set the plates in the sterilizer and hurriedly head down to the cargo bay.  Anxious to hear the story behind one of his many scars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Karak: Fuck.  
> Obeca?: Promise?  
> Radi: Gladly.  
> Slede pu, priva: Next time, in private.


	20. Jarrod

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shepard hears the tale of Wrex's father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this took so long guys. So many issues but I'm finally starting to feel like myself again and I think my writer's block is gone. I know it's short but I had a hard time deciding where to go after the story. I hope it sounds good. Feedback is always appreciated.  
> Sidenote:  
> Vrat - neck (general) or Krogan equivalent of jugular (specific)

     I ride the elevator down to the cargo bay, fighting the urge to pace.  The elevator door slides open and I step out to see an empty cargo bay.  _Hmm… looks like Wrex cleared everyone out._

     I look around and see Wrex standing by the Mako rather than leaning on the bulkhead.  I walk over to where he’s standing, and smile at him.  “Wrex.”

     “Shepard,” he pauses before continuing, “You got down here pretty quick.”

     “Well, I’m always excited to hear a story,” I say as casually as I can.

     He sniffs a scoff and replies, “Sure, Shepard.”

     “Just because I want more than a story doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy the story too.”  I continue, emphasizing my point, “So which scar are we starting on?”

     He chuckles, the rumbling causing heat to pool between my legs, “There’s a lot of them, but I think we’ll start with the ones you can see right now.”

     “So, when you tell me the others, will I get to see them?” I ask, teasing.

     He huffs a laugh.  “We’ll see about that.”

     “That’s what I’m hoping.”  I climb up and perch myself on the back tire of the Mako.  It puts me at about level with him.

     He takes a deep breath, this is not a boasting story.  “This story is about this set of scars,” he begins, running his claws gently along the four gouges down his face.  “It was right after the Krogan Rebellions.  The genophage had been released on Tuchanka and it led to a division in the population, two different mindsets, two different solutions…”

 

_Jarrod, the Urdnot Warlord, calls for an all-out, no-holds-barred attack against the Turians and Salarians.  “We fight to the last, they will pay for what they’ve done to us!” The crowd below him cries out in support, they want blood; they want retribution._

_A few youngsters stand towards the back, they do not shout their agreeance.  Among them, a young Wrex, freshly through his Rite.  Their fighting, their behavior has gotten them nothing; nothing but an irradiated planet and a genetically engineered disease to nearly halt reproduction._

_Wrex grumbles to his krantt, “We need scientists, we need a cure so we can repopulate, not to throw ourselves into war and kill ourselves off, that’s what THEY want.”_

_His krantt nods in affirmation.  Their generation has to break tradition so that they all can live._

_Wrex gathers a following, mostly pups and youngsters but their group is growing.  Jarrod heard of this group, this rival to his power._

_He summons the leader of the group to meet him in the ancestors’ resting place.  He positions his most loyal throughout the graveyard, ready to move on his command._

_Wrex knows to expect a trap, Jarrod is foolish but not stupid.  A one-on-one with Wrex is something he’s not certain he’d win._

_They meet amongst the headstones after night falls; father and son in a battle of wills._

_“Stand down, pup.  We need to fight.  We must rise against those who plagued us.  We deserve revenge for what they did.  We are fighters and warriors, we’ll make them pay in blood!”_

_“What we need is a cure.  We need to research the genophage and find a cure.  We need to repopulate, focus on breeding, our numbers won’t be enough if we keep fighting a war that we can’t win,” Wrex’s voice is quiet, for a Krogan, but firm._

_Jarrod roars and his followers move in.  Some rise from the graves themselves and attack Wrex, pulling him down onto the ground.  Jarrod strikes at Wrex’s face, scratching down his nose and jaw.  Blood wells up, the stench of it sticks in his nose._

_Jarrod looms over Wrex, his voice clear, “You’re not worth killing.”_

_Wrex pulls himself free and drives his dagger into Jarrod’s chest, slicing through the muscle of both hearts._

 

     “I left Tuchanka that same night and never went back.  They want to throw their lives away then why bother,” Wrex finishes.

     Wrex stands just out of reach, his look is solemn with a hint of pain tinging his features, something most wouldn’t see if they didn’t know what to look for.

     “You can’t give up on them Wrex, you would make a great leader for the Krogan.  You should keep trying to make a change, your people need you,” I speak from my heart.  Being eye-level with Wrex was a little strange but nice.  His eyes are just brighter than his crest and brighten more with my words.

     His attempt at indifference is only betrayed by my knowledge of his species.  His voice is gruff as he replies, “They’re not worth the trouble.”

     “It’s been over 1,000 years, Wrex.  You may be able to change more minds now, or maybe you won’t have as many minds to change.  Just think about it.  I think you’ll do wonderfully if you try,” I encourage.

     He grunts.  “Alright, Shepard.  I’ll think about it.”

     I smile brightly at him.  “Good.”

     I start to jump down but stop when Wrex speaks up again, “How did you learn about the vrat pressure point?  Not many, outside of Krogan, know about it, we tend to keep that knowledge away from other species.”

     “I trained with some Krogan from Clan Nakmor.  Younger than you, but then again, most are.  We grew close and spent months training together, that’s where I picked up on a lot of Krogan mannerisms and learned to pick out small movements.  They knew when I left I was likely going to be fighting mercs in my line of work and with merc groups being largely Krogan or Vorcha, they taught me to defend myself, however, I needed to.  They told me if I ever got charged or pinned and needed to get away quickly that was the best thing to do,” I explain.

     “Nakmor, huh?” he grunts.  He shifts his weight and crosses his arms, a move meant to draw attention to his arms and face, more specifically his scars.

     I smirk a little and hop down off the Mako. “I didn’t sleep with any of them, though I did get a couple of breeding requests.  See you later, Wrex,” I tease as I head towards the elevator.  _Jealousy is kinda cute on him…_


End file.
